Shell's Polar Pioneer rig juts out into the West Waterway of Seattle's Duwamish River.

State To Shell: Long-Term Moorage Of Arctic Drill Rig Unconstitutional

KUOW.org      By John Ryan       May 22, 2015 

State officials said Friday that it's unconstitutional for Shell Oil to store its Arctic drilling rig at the Port of Seattle's Terminal 5.

The Washington Department of Natural Resources sent a letter to Shell Friday, informing the energy giant that short-term mooring of Shell's Polar Pioneer rig at the Port is fine.

But the state constitution prohibits long-term mooring outside of harbors.

The Polar Pioneer, a massive floating platform 400 feet long and 292 feet wide, is more than twice as wide as the official harbor area at Terminal 5, where it arrived last week. And for most of Terminal 5's length, its 130-foot-wide harbor area is completely covered by a dock that extends over the water and the state-owned land beneath it.

The Polar Pioneer juts out into the West Waterway of the Duwamish River, where long-term private use is forbidden by the state constitution. ("The state shall never give, sell or lease to any private person, corporation or association any rights whatever in the waters beyond such harbor lines," Article XV reads.)

"A ship could moor long-term inside the harbor line but not outside the harbor line," DNR spokesman Joe Smillie said. "The state constitution is pretty explicit in forbidding the state from giving, selling or leasing the rights to use the waters outside harbor lines for long-term moorage or other commercial uses."

Smillie said DNR determines what constitutes "long-term" on a case-by-case basis.

The DNR letter asked Shell how long it plans to keep its rig at Terminal 5 and requested an answer by June 1.

Crude Tank Car Changes from Tesoro & BNSF; Adm. Papp Rues sHellNO

Tesoro building crude rail cars stronger than new US rules require

By Reuters | 18 May, 2015

HOUSTON: US refiner Tesoro Corp has ordered new crude oil railcars with features that surpass safety standards that federal regulators set this month, executives told Reuters.

The 210 tank cars being built in northern Louisiana are so-called pressure cars, with the same design as those that carry liquid petroleum gases such as propane and butane, gas cargoes that are more flammable than crude oil.

They will be delivered in the coming months after being ordered in early 2014. 

The new federal rules for all crude and ethanol railcars built after Oct. 1 of this year do not require strength to the level of a pressure car, but are stronger than the standards adopted by the industry in 2011. ….

….Tesoro isn't the only refiner that didn't wait for word from the US DOT to order stronger cars.

Phillips 66 confirmed to Reuters that it also last year ordered 350 non-pressurized new cars that mostly match the new DOT standard. Those cars will be delivered by year-end, the company said. …     more here

Customer concerns prompt BNSF to withdraw plan to buy tank cars

Progressive Railroading  May 19, 2015

BNSF Railway Co. has dropped an earlier announced plan to acquire up to 5,000 next-generation crude-oil tank cars, the Class I said in a recent letter to customers.

Last year, the Class I indicated it would purchase new tank cars to help settle marketplace concerns over crude-by-rail safety. But conversations with customers in recent months convinced BNSF executives to change direction.....

....The decision to drop that plan comes two weeks after the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) announced its final rule on crude-by-rail safety. The rules require that tank cars built after Oct. 1 must meet design and performance requirements for a new class of tank car, the DOT-117, while existing cars must be retrofitted to meet the new standards. The rule also calls for the replacement of DOT-111 tank cars.
 
In their letter, Bobb and Fox said BNSF would work with customers to make the transition to the next generation of cars or retrofit cars into shale crude service as soon as practicable.....

..... The executives added that they have concerns about USDOT's mandate for electronically controlled pneumatic brakes....  more here

Note:  what he probably meant was 'effective'!

Shell Arctic oil drilling reaction ‘overblown’ – US envoy

Admiral Papp says conditional approval to explore polar waters just ‘another step’, as ‘kayaktivists’ protest in Seattle

RTCC      18 May 2015    By Alex Pashley

America’s special representative for the Arctic has said coverage of Shell’s tentative green light to drill in the region has been exaggerated.

“The stories have been a little bit overblown where we are with Shell,” Admiral Robert Papp told reporters in a press call on Monday.

“This is properly Department of Interior business and what they done is approved another step in the process for Shell to drill in the Arctic, not final approval.”

Last week, the federal department cleared the Anglo-Dutch company to restart operations off the coast of Alaska, three years after it was forced to halt them, following a string of safety failures including an oil rig fire.

Bill McKibben founder of 350.org, which has coordinated a global fossil fuel divestment movement said the decision amounted to ”one of the greatest acts of corporate irresponsibility in the planet’s history”.

Green groups have warned of potential spills in the fragile icy conditions without sufficient guards to respond to leaks…..     more here

Info from the Port of Vancouver

From Don Steinke:  The Columbian has done 600 stories on the oil terminal in the last 18 months.

Their latest is a in depth analysis of the culture of secrecy at the Port.

Please vote in the poll in the fourth link.

http://www.columbian.com/news/2015/may/17/port-vancouver-secrecy-oil-terminal-public-in-dark/

http://www.columbian.com/news/2015/may/18/skids-greased-for-oil-terminal-behind-closed-doors/

http://www.columbian.com/news/2015/may/19/port-vancouveoil-terminal-lease-gusher-of-backlash/

http://www.columbian.com/polls/2015/may/what-do-you-think-port-should-do-after-series/results/

Potential for 'mass casualties' from crude by rail- and other links

Potential for 'mass casualties' from crude oil rail cars

By Shaley Sanders   KCBD    May 12, 2015

LUBBOCK COUNTY, TX (KCBD) -  Slower speeds and safer rail cars, that's what federal investigators say is needed to stem the rise of explosive crude oil car accidents.

In 2013, 47 people died in a village in Quebec after a train carrying tankers full of crude oil derailed.

"We have a potential here for mass casualties, with a giant fire event," said Fred Millar, an independent consultant on rail safety who has worked with several cities, counties and railroad unions.....    more here

 

The push to repeal the US oil export ban faces a steep obstacle

Timothy Gardner, Reuters    May 13, 2015

Lawmakers pushing to repeal the 1970s-era ban on U.S. oil exports face a steep obstacle: The Obama administration sees no need to fully remove the restriction while the country is still importing part of its oil supply.....

....While there is plenty of resistance in Congress against lifting the ban, the prospects for a reversal could improve under some of the following conditions:  ....      more here

Obama is not anti-oil

Ken Hocke   5/12/2015    Work Boat

.....Regardless of what anyone else says, Obama hasn’t given up on exploring for oil and gas off the East Coast or in the Arctic. The Obama administration announced this week that it would allow, conditionally, drilling for oil off the coast of Alaska. Meanwhile, two East Coast states, North Carolina and South Carolina, have federal permits that allow them to begin offshore seismic surveys ahead of drilling for oil and gas in the Atlantic.

When you look at his record, which includes overseeing one of the biggest increases in oil production in U.S. history, how can you say he is anti-oil? No, man, he’s pro energy independence, and this latest move makes it even harder to say Obama is anti-oil.....    more here

Oil Industry Challenges Rules Meant to Stop Train Explosions

BILLINGS, Mont. — May 12, 2015   By MATTHEW BROWN Associated Press 

 

The U.S. oil industry has filed a court challenge to new rules aimed at reducing the risk of catastrophic accidents involving crude moved by rail, following a string of fiery derailments in recent years.

The American Petroleum Institute's petition to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., would set aside a requirement for improvements to railroad tank cars that are known to fail during accidents.....    more here

 

(Canadian) Legislation to require tougher insurance for oil shipments by rail

Stephen Karmazyn, Special to Financial Post |     May 13, 2015

 

Experts expect big changes to come to Canadian railways through the federal government’s Safe and Accountable Rail Act, especially relating to crude oil and toxic substances.....

 

.... Bill C-52 calls for amendments to the Canada Transportation Act, specifically to railway insurance liability.....    more here