By
Amy M.E. Fischer, Columbian
City government reporter The Columbian 03/02/15
Moments earlier, roughly a dozen people took the microphone to praise the council's stance against oil terminals in Vancouver and voice support for continuation of the six-month moratorium adopted Sept. 11. No one spoke against the extension.
"Corporations do not care about you or me or our families or communities. But you do care. I trust YOU," Den Mark Wichar, a Hough neighborhood resident, told the council, referring to the companies interested in establishing crude oil facilities locally.
"Thanks for having our backs," said Cathryn Chudy of Vancouver.
The original moratorium was due to expire March 10. By continuing the moratorium for six months, city staff will have time to prepare a comprehensive review of current and potential new regulations to city code. Among other things, the staff's work will involve determining which agencies have authority over crude oil, identifying interested parties and their issues, and researching actions other municipalities have taken, according to city documents.
The moratorium doesn't affect the massive oil transfer terminal proposed by Tesoro Corp. and Savage Companies that's currently under review by the state. It would be the largest such terminal in the United States when operational, receiving an average of 360,000 barrels of crude oil per day by rail at the Port of Vancouver. The state Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council will make a recommendation to Gov. Jay Inslee regarding the Tesoro project, which the Vancouver City Council formally opposes..... more here
CP CEO fears terrorism more than derailments
Hunter Harrison says attack ‘can be planned to do the worst possible damage.’
When it comes to shipping crude oil by rail,
CP Rail CEO Hunter Harrison says he worries more about a possible
terrorist attack than derailments.
“That’s what concerns me more,” he told
reporters after a speech at the Canadian Club on Monday. “It can be
planned to do the worst possible damage.”
Harrison, who took over CP in June 2012 after a
bitter proxy fight, boasted that the company has made “quantum leaps”
to reduce accidents based on severity and frequency.
However, he said he cannot promise there won’t be more accidents.
But he says he actually worries more about
third parties doing damage to a hazardous goods tank, or tampering with
the railroads or rights of way.
“Everybody wants the products, but nobody
wants the railroad by them or their backyard,” he said during his
speech, citing logjams around Chicago, where railways pass busy areas
such as the McCormick Place convention centre and Soldier Field, home of
the National Football League’s Chicago Bears.
“There’s huge exposure to potential accidents
and we’re not addressing it like we should,” Harrison said, adding that
routing protocols should be introduced to ensure the least exposure..... more here
Cantwell to Introduce Bill on Safety Standards for Crude-by-Rail
Senator: USDOT rules don’t go far enough to protect cities and towns
kirotv.com 03/03/15
WASHINGTON,
D.C. – In a Senate Commerce Committee hearing today, U.S. Senator Maria
Cantwell (D-WA) announced plans to introduce legislation that would
establish new, stronger safety
standards for trains hauling flammable crude oil.
Cantwell told U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx that she didn’t think the Administration’s proposed rule under consideration would be strong enough and that legislation would be necessary to protect communities..... more here
No comments:
Post a Comment