Assemblymember Phil Steck (D-Colonie) is calling on the federal Department of Transportation immediately to increase safety regulations for crude oil transportation after a train derailment on Feb. 16 forced the evacuation of two towns in West Virginia, set ablaze at least 14 tanker cars, destroyed a home, poured oil into the Kanawha River, and affected two water treatment plants downstream.

“Yesterday’s derailment in West Virginia is just one more devastating example of incidents that have occurred throughout the country,” said Assemblymember Steck. “Stronger regulations need to be in place to ensure the safety of families throughout our community. There is only one solution to this problem. The natural gas liquids (NGLs) need to be removed at the source so that the oil can be made stable prior to shipment.” Steck noted that stabilization is required before oil can be put into a pipeline. “Why not do the same for shipment by rail? The technology is there.”

In the West Virginia incident, two locomotives and 109 railcars derailed and set more than a dozen tank cars ablaze and may have leaked crude oil into the water supply. This is the latest in a series of serious derailments across the U.S. and Canada involving the transport of fracked oil. While the latest incident occurred in a rural area, the risks for densely populated areas such as Menands and Colonie are even greater. Whereas concerns previously focused on outdated DOT-111 oil cars, all the cars involved in the Boomer, West Virginia disaster, as well as the Lynchberg, West Virginia disaster a year ago on the same line, were the newer CPC 1232 models, further demonstrating the need for greater safety protections, such as stabilization.

Assemblymember Steck has been consistently fighting for safer crude oil transport. In September 2014, Steck wrote a letter to the governor of North Dakota urging that Bakken crude oil be stabilized prior to transportation in order to minimize the danger to residents and the environment. This latest disaster further highlights the urgency of the situation. Crude oil is highly flammable, partly because of the presence of Natural Gas Liquids (NGLs). The stabilization process separates the NGLs and crude oil and lessens the risks associated with transporting the otherwise volatile oil. This year, Steck also reintroduced legislation to increase penalties for trains blocking highway crossings and protect citizens harmed by blocked crossings (A.3307, A.3280). When trains containing dangerous materials idle or block crossings, they present an even greater danger to families in the surrounding communities. Assemblymember Steck has also called for an increase to New York State’s Oil Spill Fund, which is one of the few funds available to help local communities and property owners recoup losses if an oil spill disaster does strike and the responsible parties for the spill do not live up to their financial obligations.

“The hazardous transportation of Bakken crude oil and other flammable materials is putting the safety of communities throughout the country at risk,” said Steck. “Now is the time to implement stronger measures to ensure our families and our communities are protected. We need to prevent disaster before it happens, not simply assure adequate funding for post-disaster cleanup.”