The legislation would immediately halt the use of older-model tank cars that have a high risk of puncturing and catching fire in derailments.
Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis.; Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray, both Democrats from Washington state; and Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., introduced legislation that would raise safety standards for trains transporting crude oil.
The Crude-By-Rail Safety Act of 2015 requires the Transportation Department’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to draft new regulations to mitigate the volatility of gases in crude oil shipped via tank car and immediately halt the use of older-model tank cars that have been shown to be at high risk for puncturing and catching fire in derailments.
“Every new derailment increases the urgency with which we need to act,” said Cantwell, ranking member on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, in a statement. “This legislation will help reduce the risk of explosion in accidents, take unsafe tank cars off the tracks, and ensure first responders have the equipment they need. We can’t afford to wait for 10 accidents per year, as estimated by the Department of Transportation.”
Specifically, the legislation would:
- Require PHMSA standards for volatility of gases in crude oil hauled by rail.
- Immediately ban the use of tank cars shown to be unsafe for shipping crude oil. (Those models include DOT-111s and unjacketed CPC-1232s.)
- Require new tank car design standards that include 9/16th inch shells, thermal protection, pressure relief valves and electronically-controlled pneumatic (ECP) brakes.
- Increase fines on railroads that violate hazardous materials laws and establish new fines for railroads and energy companies that don’t comply with safety laws.
- Authorize funding for first responder training, equipment and emergency preparedness and for increased rail inspections and energy product testing.
- Require comprehensive oil spill response plans for trains carrying oil, petroleum and other hazardous products.
- Mandate railroads establish a confidential “close-call” reporting system for employees to anonymously report problems.
- Require railroads to disclose crude-by-rail movements to State Emergency Response Commissions and Local Emergency Planning Committees along hazmat rail routes.
In January, Baldwin urged DOT and PHMSA to finalize a rule to increase oil tank car safety after the agencies missed their deadline. The agencies were required by law to have completed the rule by Jan. 15. She has also advocated for additional funding for the design, testing, and evaluation of safer tank cars, which was included in the bipartisan appropriations bill passed in December 2014. That legislation also provided grants for track improvements on oil train routes and first responder training for rail hazmat accidents.
Last week, the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufactures filed a lawsuit in federal court against Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, objecting to the $1,000 per unit surcharge BNSF charges when moving crude oil in its older DOT-111 tank cars.
