Repost from KRON4 NEWS
Category Archives: City of Benicia
Local officials may check Solano “Industrial Safety Ordinance”
Repost from Vallejo Times-Herald
[VERY interesting in this story: “Local officials say they may need to revisit the county’s Industrial Safety Ordinance to see whether modifications should be made to ensure safety in dealing with Bakken crude, which is more volatile and susceptible to explosion than heavier crude blends.” – Editor]
Huge increase in crude oil by rail to Bay Area concerns local leaders
By Robert Rogers/MediaNews GroupPosted: 03/18/2014 01:08:00 AM PDT
RICHMOND — Bakken crude oil from North Dakota is part of the mix of increased crude-by-rail shipments into Contra Costa County, raising concerns from local leaders about whether current regulations are sufficient to minimize risks of transporting the volatile fossil fuel.
“There’s a lot more to be learned, but Bakken (crude) is coming in now,” said Contra Costa County Hazardous Materials Division Director Randy Sawyer. “How much, I don’t know.”
Kinder Morgan Inc., at 1140 Canal Blvd. in Richmond, secured a permit last month to transfer crude from rail cars to trucks, said county Supervisor John Gioia, of Richmond, and is the only facility in the Bay Area that receives crude shipped on Burlington Northern Santa Fe trains, according to the California Energy Commission.
Domestic oil harvesting has increased in recent years, most notably in North Dakota, where drillers use hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” to fracture rock and extract oil. As the haul has increased, more oil is coming by rail to California refineries for processing.
Northern California volume of crude by rail increased 57 percent during 2013, from 74,332 barrels in January to 116,657 barrels in December, according to California Energy Commission statistics. But the bulk of the increase statewide went to Southern California refineries, as total state volume spiked from 155,841 barrels in January to 1,180,662 barrels in December. Only about one tenth of all crude-by-rail imports came to Northern California.
About 85 percent of the crude by rail delivered to Northern California in 2013 came from North Dakota, followed by 12.5 percent from Colorado, according to the commission. Four of the five Northern California oil refineries listed by the commission are in Contra Costa County, with the other in Benicia.
The city of Benicia is considering local resident concerns about Valero’s proposals to ship crude by rail.
Local officials say they may need to revisit the county’s Industrial Safety Ordinance to see whether modifications should be made to ensure safety in dealing with Bakken crude, which is more volatile and susceptible to explosion than heavier crude blends.
What local agencies can do to regulate the rail cargo, which is typically covered by federal interstate commerce laws, is limited.
The changes come as popular resistance to increased refining of continental oil has been building.
In the past month, critics hosted town hall-style meetings in Richmond, Martinez and Pittsburg decrying planned increases in crude-by-rail shipments into the Bay Area. Activists drew attention to rising accident numbers, with particular emphasis on a train explosion in July in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, where 47 people were killed. Other derailments and explosions have occurred in the past year in Alabama and North Dakota.
Video: Stop Crude by Rail: Benicia, CA Public Forum
In case you missed the forum in Benicia on March 10, you can listen and see the presentations of the panelists here. With apologies for the poor lighting in the room, but with gratitude to videographer Constance Beutel, who made the best of it… Great event – let’s Stop Crude by Rail! – R.S.
Marilyn Bardet, Benicia resident and Community Activist, spoke at the Stop Crude by Rail forum, Benicia, CA
Ed Ruszel, of Ruszel Woodworks, Benicia, Spoke at the Stop Crude by Rail forum, Benicia, CA
Antonia Juhasz, Oil Industry Analyst, Noted Author, spoke at the Stop Crude by Rail forum, Benicia, CA
Andrés Soto, Benicia resident, spoke at the Stop Crude by Rail Forum, Benicia, CA
Diane Bailey, Senior Scientist, NRDC, spoke at the Stop Crude by Rail Forum, Benicia, CA
Damien Luzzo, Davis resident, spoke at the Stop Crude by Rail Forum, Benicia, CA
To view the entire forum, including the video presentation, see below (approximately 1 hour).
Mayor Patterson’s Op Ed, SF Chronicle, 03Mar2014
Repost from San Francisco Chronicle, Opinion, Open Forum
Governor must ensure rail tanker safety
Elizabeth Patterson
March 3, 2014
March 3, 2014
There isn’t a moment to lose. Gov. Jerry Brown should issue an executive order to ensure that the state is prepared to deal with the highly flammable and explosive Bakken crude oil from North Dakota coming by rail and water into California.
There should be no hesitancy in taking this step, and no excuse. The exponential increase in the shipment of this “peculiar” crude is documented and has the attention of my community, and my sister communities in Solano, Contra Costa, Yolo and Sacramento counties. Citizens have organized to ask local and state officials to address their concerns about the safety of the increased rail transport of crude in what many experts – and the National Transportation Safety Board – say are the notorious DOT-111A tank cars, whose design makes them prone to puncture in accidents.
Last year’s explosive tanker rail accident in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, killed 47 people, destroyed its small downtown and spilled fuel that burned on the lake and its shore. As the Davis Mayor Pro Tem Dan Wolk noted in his letter to me, “A similar accident in Davis as the one in Quebec would likely produce even more catastrophic results, in terms of loss of life and the destruction of our downtown.”
According to the California Energy Commission, crude by rail shipments will increase in 2014 to more than 50 million barrels from the 6 million barrels in 2013.
We have seen fiery accidents documented last year with 10 major explosions involving oil trains in the United States and Canada. Clearly these increased crude-by-rail shipments in unsafe tank cars pose imminent danger to the small rural communities, such as Dunsmuir (Siskiyou County), the site of a 1991 derailment that dumped thousands of gallons of pesticide into the Sacramento River, dense urban settings in the Bay Area and all that lies in between.
Public safety must be addressed. Rail incidents involving crude oil spills increased exponentially from fewer than five in 2000 to 90 in 2012, as reported by the Pipeline Hazardous Material Safety Administration. And there is more: While the burning of Mégantic Lake is an environmental disaster, our stressed and endangered rivers, delta and wetlands alongside the tracks in California are also at risk.
These shipments of Bakken formation oil are carloads of hazardous chemicals, often incorrectly labeled. How would the Suisun Marsh survive a potential spill, explosion and fire? What contaminants could enter our delta waterways – a water source for 25 million Californians – from several vulnerable rail crossings?
The governor should waste no time in issuing an executive order that would address:
Are we prepared? The governor should direct state agencies, working with federal authorities, to assess the state’s prevention and response rules, as well as inspection programs, involving the transport of petroleum products.
Who responds? Which are the relevant local agencies? Are there well-trained, well-equipped personnel ready to respond to rural, urban and environmental incidents?
What’s the law? Does the Legislature need to change the law or regulations to enhance safety and improve coordination with federal agencies to improve the state’s ability to prevent and respond to incidents?
As mayor of a small city affected by the increase in crude-by-rail traffic, oil and hazardous materials off-loading, I expect nothing less than my state to focus its attention and resources on these public health and safety concerns – for the sake of us all.
Elizabeth Patterson is the mayor of Benicia, a refinery town.