Railroad 'Bomb Trains': Speeding to Disaster

[unhappycamper]

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Railroad-Bomb-Trains--Sp-by-Walter-Brasch-Disasters_Fracking_Hydrofracking_Oil-140821-357.html



Railroad 'Bomb Trains': Speeding to Disaster
By Walter Brasch
OpEdNews Op Eds 8/21/2014 at 05:44:56

~snip~

Now, let's pretend you're the CEO of a railroad. Your trains have been hauling 100 tanker cars of crude oil from North Dakota to refineries in Philadelphia and the Gulf Coast. That's 100 tankers on each train. A mile long.

About 90 percent of the 106,000 tanker cars currently in service were built before 2011 when stricter regulations mandated a new design. The older cars are susceptible to leaks, explosions, and fires in derailments. But, because of intense lobbying by the railroads, they are still carrying oil.

Railroad derailments in the United States last year accounted for more than one million gallons of spilled oil, more than all spills in the 40 years since the federal government began collecting data. The oil pollutes the ground and streams; the fires and explosions pollute the air.

Most of the derailments threatened public safety and led to evacuation of residential areas. One derailment led to the deaths of 47 persons, the destruction of a business district, and an estimated $2 billion for long-term pollution clean-up and rebuilding of homes and businesses. Three derailments, including one in a residential area of Philadelphia, occurred this past year in Pennsylvania.

[eppur_se_muova]

1. Rachel Maddow did a very good segment on this a few weeks ago. nt