From 2012 to 2013, the transport of crude oil by major freight railroads spiked, according to the American Association of Railroads. Even though crude oil accounted for just over 1 percent of overall 2013 traffic, there鈥檚 growing public concern about spills and other hazards.
This trend is playing out across the , along Colorado鈥檚 eastern plains, and resource-rich Weld County. As the state鈥檚 oil production boom continues, exceeding the capacity of traditional oil pipelines, more companies are shipping crude by rail.
Over the past two years, two crude loading facilities have been built and the capacity doubled at a third site in Weld County. On May 9, 2014, for the first time in nearly a decade, this region saw its first crude oil tanker derailment. Six cars of a 100-car Union Pacific train derailed south of Greeley, Colorado, spilling about 5,000 gallons of oil.
BNSF Railway said on average it operates three crude oil trains per day through Colorado.
That caught the attention of Weld County鈥檚 Office of Emergency Management.
鈥淲e really want to be able to say, 鈥極K we know individually at least from our county standpoint of what鈥檚 being transported through,鈥� whether it be crude oil, whether it be other chemicals like chlorines, and hydrous ammonias 鈥� those types of things,鈥� said Roy Rudisill, office director.
When his team encountered the May oil spill, he was surprised his agency wasn鈥檛 near the top of the railroad鈥檚 notification list.
鈥淗aving those conversations and having this incident has actually helped in the communication of if there鈥檚 another incident, we know how to get the proper communication, the right information during the incident,鈥� Rudisill said.
A New Federal Rule
Federal regulators are especially concerned about shipments of crude oil from the Bakken formation in North Dakota, Montana and parts of Canada. Bakken crude wasn鈥檛 involved in the Greeley spill, but it is believed by some to be more volatile and connected to fiery tank car accidents, .
A new rule from the U.S. Department of Transportation is focusing on Bakken crude shipments; it requires railroads to share route details and the amount of oil carried in shipments of 35 or more rail cars. Lloyd Burton, a University of Colorado professor studying rail transport of hazardous materials said the rule is a good start.
鈥淯p until this time we鈥檝e had a real problem in that local emergency responders have had almost no idea of the contents of the trains that were rolling through their communities,鈥� Burton said.
In Burton鈥檚 view it鈥檚 information that communities are owed, but that information may be something many will never get. , with the railroads saying it鈥檚 a security and competition issue.
Colorado has not signed any agreement. Nevertheless, Colorado鈥檚 Director of Emergency Management Dave Hard said shipment details will only be released to emergency responders and specific state and local government officials.
鈥淲e have to balance everything with guidance we receive from the Department of Transportation,鈥� Hard said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 important for us to follow federal guidance that鈥檚 been provided by the Department of Transportation.鈥�
Non-Bakken Shipment Details Are Scarce
When it comes to transport of non-Bakken crude in Colorado, few details are known or revealed by railroads to the public. Union Pacific Railroad declined to share information. BNSF Railway 鈥� the nation鈥檚 largest oil by rail shipper 鈥� said on average it operates three crude oil trains per day through Colorado.
Weld emergency office manager Roy Rudisill said he is able to access historical shipment information from railroads through his county. He uses the information to plan for emergency scenarios.
What keeps him up at night are the things he hasn鈥檛 planned for.
鈥淵ou hope you plan everything,鈥� Rudisill said. 鈥淏ut somewhere along the line, there鈥檚 always something that is going to come up.鈥�
The cause for the Greeley accident is still under investigation. The team is expected to wrap up its work by the end of July.
