On October 24, 2019, the “Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration” and the Department of Transportation (DOT) published a notice of proposed rulemaking regarding “Hazardous Materials: Liquefied Natural Gas by Rail”, to allow bulk transport of Methane, refrigerated liquid, commonly known as liquefied natural gas (LNG), in rail tank cars.
Alarmed about the potential danger, Martin County issued comments opposing the proposed changes. The County urged a further analysis of the safety and environmental impacts in this letter to the Federal Government:
Read Martin County’s Comments: MartinCounty_LNG
The Guardians of Martin County, also very concerned about the safety of LNG transported on the same rails as a higher-speed passenger train, submitted comments noting the high number of deaths since the train began running over two years ago and the condition of the bridges.
A higher-speed passenger train runs on the same tracks as the proposed new rulemaking to allow bulk transport of LNG by rail.
Read the GMC Letter: GMC_Final_Letter
Now The Washington Post reports that the Trump administration has set a deadline of May 10th to put this new rule into effect, months before a study by the Federal Railroad Administration will be completed:
Read an excerpt from the article below:
Published March 3, 2020, by Will Englund
Small amounts of LNG have been transported by rail on a trial basis in Alaska and Florida. But if the new rule is adopted, trains of 100 or more tank cars, each with a capacity of 30,000 gallons, could start carrying LNG, primarily from shale fields to saltwater ports, where it would be loaded onto ships for export. They could traverse dozens or hundreds of different jurisdictions across the country, some that rely on volunteer firefighters as first responders, while others are major population centers.
Read the story from The Washington Post Here: