Post Lac Megantic Disaster, Trains Carrying Crude Oil Continue Increasing Shipments

[cali]

These shipments are up 150% from last year and will increase even more this year and next. Although this is focused on Canada, roughly the same statistics apply in the U.S.

Canada’s two big railroads and oil producers are pressing ahead with plans to increase the use steel-wheels-on-steel-rails to move crude even as the small Quebec town of Lac-Megantic reels from what can go wrong with a crude-laden train.

Canadian Pacific Railway, despite four derailments of trains carrying oil or petroleum products this year, posted a record second-quarter profit, crediting long-haul oil shipments for much of the gain, while Canadian National Railway cited oil transport as a key to its profits for the quarter.

<snip>

Jane O’Hagan, chief marketing officer for CP Rail, said the movement of oil will “form a larger part” of her company’s business, which is expected to account for 70,000 carloads this year and double that in 2015.

“Crude-by-rail remains a complementary and important supply chain option for producers, refiners and transloaders looking to benefit from the flexibility of moving any type of crude to any North American market,” she said.

<snip>

CP Rail’s Chief Operating Officer Keith Creel, retaliating against those who suggested the company’s ongoing layoffs to reduce its payroll from 19,505 a year ago to 15,500 by the end of this year probably reduced the safety component, said the root causes of derailment were “not even remotely connected” to trimming manpower or capital budgets.

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http://www.petroleumnewsbakken.com/pntruncate/465006349.shtml

[Riftaxe]

1. Good news at least

Since I am not ready yet to give up heating, power and plastics.

[Cooley Hurd]

2. Good news? Really?? 30-40 people were fucking VAPORIZED in the Musi-Café...

Enjoy that heat, power and plastic, rift...

[Riftaxe]

4. and you have foregone these conveniences exactly how

now?

Lord the deaths are a tragedy that definitely needs remedy and improvement to make sure it does not happen again.

But again how exactly does that make you better then me, if you are still enjoying the conveniences that petroleum supplies you?

[Cooley Hurd]

5. I vote.

I vote for politicians who promise to reverse the increased use of fossil fuels. That's all I can do.

[Riftaxe]

8. I vote for politicians who follow through on food and fuel

Having spent time, including a winter without much of either. While i can say i do not care for the environmental effects that petroleium society brings us, I am damned well good and glad it is here while we transition.

[MineralMan]

3. It's a fossil fuel economy in so many ways.

The oil has to get to the refineries somehow, so even people writing here on DU can go about their business, heat their homes, and shop for the goods they need.

Trains seem like a poor way to move crude oil, as far as I can see.

[cali]

6. The problems with transporting by rail are alarming ones

The majority of it is shipped in unsafe container cars. Only one company in North America manufactures the safer ones and they have a two year wait. Lac Megantic is like many towns and cities in North America in that the trains travel through populated areas. Rail infrastructure is over burdened and in many places in bad shape. And then there's the lack of regulation.

More accidents waiting to happen.

[MineralMan]

9. Yes. Piplelines are the way to transport oil. There are occasional

breakages, but none of those have burnt down towns. Until we can free ourselves from a fossil fuel economy, transportation of petroleum products should be done with pipelines. They're stationary and don't derail in the middle of town.

Of course, the less oil we use, the less needs to be transported.

Today, I was behind a tanker truck hauling liquid oxygen. Now, there is a dangerous load. I moved to the leftmost lane and moved past it as quickly as I could. Moving hazardous materials on our road and railways is like shipping bombs. People don't really think about it, but there are many, many dangerous loads passing through any community with an Interstate highway.

[BlueToTheBone]

7. More regulation is what is needed.`

I know that is such a joke today, but if these tankers were double hulled, the spill rate would go down for sure.