The safe transporting of oil through Washington (and around the country) has been a top concern of constituents, first responders, and lawmakers over the last couple years. Domestic oil production is surging and increasingly being transported by rail. There has been a significant increase in rail accidents involving oil – Quebec, New Brunswick, Alabama, and in Pennsylvania. In fact, more oil spilled as a result of railroad accidents in 2013, than the past 40 years combined.
With derailments always a possibility, the Washington State House acted in 2014 passing HB 2347. The measure was designed to enhance the safety of the transportation of oil over rail lines and through waterways by giving localities and first responders the information necessary to properly prepare in the event of a catastrophic event. (Click here to see stunning before and after shots of what happened in Lac-Megantic, Quebec)
Citing security and proprietary concerns, one of the main roadblocks has been a reluctance on the part of the rail industry to let localities know just what is coming through their towns and when.
ProPublica, using safety-incident data collected by the train companies and reported to the U.S. government, published an interactive graph which helps to bring light to some of the routes the oil is taking. While it’s not exhaustive of all the routes the being used for oil transportation, it is a start.
HB 2347 did not get a vote in the Republican-controlled Senate last year, buy there is little doubt this issue will continue to be hotly debated in the upcoming 2015 session. Stay tuned.