From: McClatchy DC
By Curtis Tate
WASHINGTON — More crude oil
was spilled in U.S. rail incidents last year than was spilled in the
nearly four decades since the federal government began collecting data
on such spills, an analysis of the data shows.
Including major
derailments in Alabama and North Dakota, more than 1.15 million gallons
of crude oil was spilled from rail cars in 2013, according to data from
the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
By
comparison, from 1975 to 2012, U.S. railroads spilled a combined 800,000
gallons of crude oil. The spike underscores new concerns about the
safety of such shipments as rail has become the preferred mode for oil
producers amid a North American energy boom.
The federal data does
not include incidents in Canada where oil spilled from trains. Canadian
authorities estimate that more than 1.5 million gallons of crude oil
spilled in Lac-Megantic, Quebec, on July 6, when a runaway train
derailed and exploded, killing 47 people. The cargo originated in North
Dakota.
Nearly 750,000 gallons of crude oil spilled from a train
on Nov. 8 near Aliceville, Ala. The train also originated in North
Dakota and caught fire after it derailed in a swampy area. No one was
injured or killed. MORE
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