From: HuffPost
by Riki Ott
Recently, the U.S. Transportation Department (DOT) issued an
emergency order requiring railroads to inform state emergency management
officials about large crude oil shipments. Specifically, the
regulations required railroads to disclose the expected routes across
country, volume of oil being shipped, and a responsible party.
This latest emergency order follows a late February emergency order by DOT requiring shippers to test oil produced from the Bakken shale region for accurate hazard classification of this extremely volatile oil, while also requiring transport of crude oil in the most sturdy state-of-art tanker cars. Earlier, DOT had issued violation notices and fines against tank car loaders in North Dakota for downgrading the hazard rating of crude oil shipments from the Bakken.
If shale oil produced by hydraulic fracturing or "fracking" requires extra precautions and safety procedures during normal handling and transportation to minimize harm to first responders and the public, then logic dictates that this ultra-hazardous oil should also require extra precautions and safety procedures during spill response.
MORE
This latest emergency order follows a late February emergency order by DOT requiring shippers to test oil produced from the Bakken shale region for accurate hazard classification of this extremely volatile oil, while also requiring transport of crude oil in the most sturdy state-of-art tanker cars. Earlier, DOT had issued violation notices and fines against tank car loaders in North Dakota for downgrading the hazard rating of crude oil shipments from the Bakken.
If shale oil produced by hydraulic fracturing or "fracking" requires extra precautions and safety procedures during normal handling and transportation to minimize harm to first responders and the public, then logic dictates that this ultra-hazardous oil should also require extra precautions and safety procedures during spill response.
MORE
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