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Oil by Rail - Part 2
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<p>[quote user="NorthWest"]Here in the NW, we are getting lots more oil trains, and so, there is lots of NIMBY reaction. Most want an "environmental impact statement" just to allow BNSF to operate oil trains along the Columbia River, believing an oil spill that will kill all the salmon is inevitable. Most articles seem to take an anti-rail bent, such as this one:<a href="http://www.king5.com/news/business/185072141.html">http://www.king5.com/news/business/185072141.html</a>. What are your thoughts?[/quote]</p> <p><span style="font-family:verdana,geneva;font-size:small;">The tone of the article is ominous.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family:verdana,geneva;font-size:small;">The opposition constantly makes the point that an oil train derailment is more likely than a pipeline breach. But the key point goes to the amount of oil likely to be released in either type of mishap. I suspect a pipeline breach is likely to release a lot more oil than a derailment. But that does not make any difference because the point is that the opposition does not want oil to be transported either by rail or pipelines. </span></p> <p><span style="font-family:verdana,geneva;font-size:small;">What they are arguing is that they have stopped a pipeline because it is hazardous to the planet, and they are equally justified in stopping the oil trains for the same reason. This does not look good for the sudden rail boom in oil. Eventually an oil train is going to pile up and spill a lot of oil. When it does, it will become the symbol for the greens to advance their case that oil trains should be banned or regulated out of existence. </span></p> <p><span style="font-family:verdana,geneva;font-size:small;">It will make no difference how much actual damage the first oil train spill does. It will simply demonstrate what is possible. It will be the trigger for the kneejerk reaction in the regulatory community. As such, it will be the most costly train wreck in history due the damage it will do the oil hauling rail business. </span></p>
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