SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Latest Oil Train Derailment a 'Wake-up Call' for Renewable Energy
Derailment of train carrying Bakken crude in Lynchburg, Va 'a potent reminder of the dangers that come with our dependence on dirty fuel'
May 01, 2014
The fiery train derailment that struck the town of Lynchburg, Virginia should serve as a wake-up call for the dangers of transporting crude by rail as well as for the need for a renewable transformation, environmental groups charge.
In the incident that took place Wednesday, over a dozen tanker cars derailed, shooting smoke and flames into the sky and sending three of the cars into the James River where they leaked oil, causing a "significant spill" and unknown ecological damage.
The CSX train was carrying Bakken crude from North Dakota and was about 170 west of its destination, Yorktown, Virgina, when the derailment occurred.
It marks the latest in a series of explosive disasters when trains carrying crude oil from the Bakken shale fields of North Dakota derailed.
Just a week before the Lynchburg derailment, railroad industry experts warned at a forum held by the National Transportation Safety Board that none of the train cars traveling through the nation's towns with North Dakota's Bakken crude is safe. That warning came just months after the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration warned that crude from North Dakota's Bakken shale field is "more flammable than traditional heavy crude oil."
"Sadly the crash and fire in Lynchburg isn't a surprise," stated Mollie Matteson, senior scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity's Northeast office in Richmond, Vermont.
"The safest place for dirty fuels is in the ground."
--Glen Besa, Sierra Club Virginia Chapter"Every day trains with tens of thousands of barrels of highly flammable Bakken crude are rumbling through cities and small towns across the country, endangering people, rivers, wetlands and wildlife," Matteson added.
This latest disaster "has got to be a wake-up call for federal authorities to protect people and the environment from these dangerous shipments," she said, because "we can't afford to wait for another train wreck before strong measures are enacted to protect communities, drinking water supplies and natural areas."
Yet the Lynchburg accident points not only to the dangers inherent with transporting this the specific type of crude, by rail or other means.
The disaster "is a potent reminder of the dangers that come with our dependence on dirty fuels and reinforces the need for better safety measures and increased emergency preparedness," stated Sierra Club Virginia Chapter Director Glen Besa.
"In the wake of this and other recent dirty fuel disasters it's clear that we must move as quickly as possible to safer, cleaner forms of energy like wind and solar. The safest place for dirty fuels is in the ground."
_________________________________________
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
The fiery train derailment that struck the town of Lynchburg, Virginia should serve as a wake-up call for the dangers of transporting crude by rail as well as for the need for a renewable transformation, environmental groups charge.
In the incident that took place Wednesday, over a dozen tanker cars derailed, shooting smoke and flames into the sky and sending three of the cars into the James River where they leaked oil, causing a "significant spill" and unknown ecological damage.
The CSX train was carrying Bakken crude from North Dakota and was about 170 west of its destination, Yorktown, Virgina, when the derailment occurred.
It marks the latest in a series of explosive disasters when trains carrying crude oil from the Bakken shale fields of North Dakota derailed.
Just a week before the Lynchburg derailment, railroad industry experts warned at a forum held by the National Transportation Safety Board that none of the train cars traveling through the nation's towns with North Dakota's Bakken crude is safe. That warning came just months after the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration warned that crude from North Dakota's Bakken shale field is "more flammable than traditional heavy crude oil."
"Sadly the crash and fire in Lynchburg isn't a surprise," stated Mollie Matteson, senior scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity's Northeast office in Richmond, Vermont.
"The safest place for dirty fuels is in the ground."
--Glen Besa, Sierra Club Virginia Chapter"Every day trains with tens of thousands of barrels of highly flammable Bakken crude are rumbling through cities and small towns across the country, endangering people, rivers, wetlands and wildlife," Matteson added.
This latest disaster "has got to be a wake-up call for federal authorities to protect people and the environment from these dangerous shipments," she said, because "we can't afford to wait for another train wreck before strong measures are enacted to protect communities, drinking water supplies and natural areas."
Yet the Lynchburg accident points not only to the dangers inherent with transporting this the specific type of crude, by rail or other means.
The disaster "is a potent reminder of the dangers that come with our dependence on dirty fuels and reinforces the need for better safety measures and increased emergency preparedness," stated Sierra Club Virginia Chapter Director Glen Besa.
"In the wake of this and other recent dirty fuel disasters it's clear that we must move as quickly as possible to safer, cleaner forms of energy like wind and solar. The safest place for dirty fuels is in the ground."
_________________________________________
The fiery train derailment that struck the town of Lynchburg, Virginia should serve as a wake-up call for the dangers of transporting crude by rail as well as for the need for a renewable transformation, environmental groups charge.
In the incident that took place Wednesday, over a dozen tanker cars derailed, shooting smoke and flames into the sky and sending three of the cars into the James River where they leaked oil, causing a "significant spill" and unknown ecological damage.
The CSX train was carrying Bakken crude from North Dakota and was about 170 west of its destination, Yorktown, Virgina, when the derailment occurred.
It marks the latest in a series of explosive disasters when trains carrying crude oil from the Bakken shale fields of North Dakota derailed.
Just a week before the Lynchburg derailment, railroad industry experts warned at a forum held by the National Transportation Safety Board that none of the train cars traveling through the nation's towns with North Dakota's Bakken crude is safe. That warning came just months after the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration warned that crude from North Dakota's Bakken shale field is "more flammable than traditional heavy crude oil."
"Sadly the crash and fire in Lynchburg isn't a surprise," stated Mollie Matteson, senior scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity's Northeast office in Richmond, Vermont.
"The safest place for dirty fuels is in the ground."
--Glen Besa, Sierra Club Virginia Chapter"Every day trains with tens of thousands of barrels of highly flammable Bakken crude are rumbling through cities and small towns across the country, endangering people, rivers, wetlands and wildlife," Matteson added.
This latest disaster "has got to be a wake-up call for federal authorities to protect people and the environment from these dangerous shipments," she said, because "we can't afford to wait for another train wreck before strong measures are enacted to protect communities, drinking water supplies and natural areas."
Yet the Lynchburg accident points not only to the dangers inherent with transporting this the specific type of crude, by rail or other means.
The disaster "is a potent reminder of the dangers that come with our dependence on dirty fuels and reinforces the need for better safety measures and increased emergency preparedness," stated Sierra Club Virginia Chapter Director Glen Besa.
"In the wake of this and other recent dirty fuel disasters it's clear that we must move as quickly as possible to safer, cleaner forms of energy like wind and solar. The safest place for dirty fuels is in the ground."
_________________________________________
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy