It’s an improvement, but not a resolution.
The Bellingham Herald reported Saturday that since the first week of October, the BP refinery at Cherry Point has stopped using older DOT-111 tank cars for incoming shipments of Bakken crude. Both the DOT-111 tank cars and Bakken crude were involved in the July 16, 2013, rail disaster in Lac Magentic, Quebec, that killed 47 people. BP’s Bakken shipments are now arriving in CPC-1232 tank cars that feature thicker steel shells, protective shields on each end and improved valve protection.
BP’s spokesman, Bill Kidd, said it already had been using the newer tank cars for about 60 percent of its Bakken shipments. Citing “community concern,” the Bellingham Herald reported, BP ramped up its phase-out of the DOT-111 cars.
Tesoro’s refinery near Anacortes, since July 1, has used only the CPC-1232 cars for rail shipments of Bakken crude.
It’s a voluntary standard that ought to be quickly adopted by the state’s other refineries. ConocoPhillips at Cherry Point and Shell near Anacortes are planning rail facilities. All four refineries are north of Snohomish County, meaning rail shipments for all roll or will roll through the county. Currently about 10 trains a week ship crude by rail through the county.
BP and Tesoro deserves credit for moving in advance of state and federal regulators on the issue, although it doesn’t negate the need for the current review by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the state of Washington. A stricter government standard for the rail cars and for their operation is vital.
The Department of Transportation announced in July it was beginning a rule-making process for the transportation of crude oil, ethanol and other flammable materials that would phase out the older DOT-111 cars within two years. Yet to be determined is what the federal standard for the cars will be and what regulations will be put in place regarding speed, braking equipment, routes, crossings and notification of state emergency response agencies.
And while replacing the older cars with the CPC-1232s is an improvement, it may not be enough of one for the long haul.
“We have found that the 1232 is also not as robust as is needed,” National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Eric Weiss told the Benicia Independent, a blog in Benicia, California, home to a Valero refinery.
In late April, a 1232 car, part of a 17-car derailment in Lynchburg, Virginia, was one of three cars to fail and spill its Bakken crude into the James River, causing a large fire.
Until more robust safety standards are in place, a switch to the CPC-1232s is the least oil companies can do.
Clarification: This editorial has been updated with the information that Tesoro in Anacortes has been using only the CPC-1232 rail cars for crude oil shipments since July 1.
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