Last
year's oil train derailment under the Magnolia Bridge. In this open
letter, Seattle City Council member Mike O'Brien calls on Warren Buffett
to use his influence "as the largest shareholder of Berkshire Hathaway,
which owns not only Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad (BNSF), but
also Union Tank Car," to push for tougher oil train safety measures. City of Seattle
Dear Mr. Buffett,
One year ago this week, an oil train passing through Seattle
ran off the tracks
underneath the Magnolia Bridge, derailing three of its 100 tank cars
carrying Bakken crude oil from North Dakota. Considering that unrefined
Bakken crude is highly volatile, we count ourselves lucky to have
avoided the catastrophic impacts these tank cars could have brought upon this city.
Today I write to you inviting an action that supports the best
interest of Seattle and furthers your legacy as a leader of integrity
for your generation. As local and federal policymakers grapple with the
increasing risks oil trains pose to our communities, you are faced with
a watershed moment.
You can use your influence as the largest shareholder of Berkshire
Hathaway, which owns not only Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad
(BNSF), but also Union Tank Car, to minimize the risk to life, property,
and the environment from oil trains.
An oil spill in Seattle so close to Puget Sound could take
millions of dollars to clean up and a generation to recover. Or worse,
an explosion in Seattle could result in an
untold loss of human life and property damage
if it were to occur downtown along the railroad tracks that run a
stone's throw away from the stadiums where the Mariners and Seahawks
play. Frighteningly, these scenarios are well within the realm of
possibility, as we have already seen five fiery oil train derailments in
North America this year. Something must be done to protect Seattle and
countless other cities across the country that bear the risk that your
deadly oil trains pose.
I've done everything I know how to do as a citizen, an activist, and
as a City Councilmember to try and stop an inevitable disaster from
happening. But cities are severely limited in our ability to impose
regulatory measures on oil trains. The
federal government has primary jurisdiction
to regulate railroad use and therefore has the most authority to
mitigate the potential for tragic consequences associated with oil train
accidents.
Burlington Northern Santa Fe and railroad industry representatives have used their influence to
routinely oppose federal and state safety regulations
such as speed limits, public information disclosure, liability coverage
for catastrophic incidents, minimum staffing requirements on trains,
and electronically controlled pneumatic braking systems. And as a result
of industry pressure, Model DOT-111 tank cars full of crude oil will
still be allowed on rail lines passing through Seattle for at least two
more years, despite the fact that they have a "high incidence of failure
during accidents" and "can almost always be expected to breach in
derailments that involved multiple car-to-car impacts," according to a
2012 Railroad Accident Report from the National Transportation Safety
Board.
This industry opposition poses disastrous consequences for which
railroad companies are not prepared. The Bakken crude-filled oil train
that derailed and exploded in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec vaporized 47 people
instantly. In addition to the terrible loss of life, liabilities totaled
upwards of $2 billion and forced the railroad company into bankruptcy.
Yet, as the
Wall Street Journal reports,
there is not enough commercial insurance coverage in the world to
adequately cover the costs that would be associated with a worst-case
oil train derailment in a major city like Seattle.
Oil trains are
ticking time bombs on rails, and each
one passing through a small town in North Dakota or a large city like
Seattle is a risk to the people and the environment of that community.
We urgently need stronger federal protections against these dangerous
oil trains rolling through our communities. So I urge you to use your
immense influence in Washington, DC and around the country to call for
the immediate passage of the
Crude-by-Rail Safety Act.
This Act, sponsored by Senators Maria Cantwell (WA-D), Tammy Baldwin
(WI-D), Diane Feinstein (CA-D) and Patty Murray (WA-D), would strengthen
notification and disclosure requirements regarding oil by rail
shipments, require refinement of volatile Bakken crude prior to
transport, improve oil tank car safety, and establish comprehensive
emergency response plans in the event of large oil train accidents.
These regulations will provide
far greater assurances than those given by BNSF or Berkshire Hathaway thus far.
On the one-year anniversary of Seattle's own oil train accident, I
implore to you join me in calling for public safety over profit. I ask
that Berkshire Hathaway and BNSF
take full responsibility
for the risks they impose on Seattle and other cities across the
country. I call on you to use the full force of your influence to
support the federal regulations necessary for the oil and rail
industries to bear the costs and risks of safe oil production and
transport. Doing nothing — or worse, continuing opposition to new safety
regulations — puts the lives of the millions of people living and
working along these railways in danger, jeopardizes your legacy, and
could leave you with blood (and oil) on your hands.
Please join with Seattle and cities around the country in calling for
the safe, responsible transport of oil by rail, and help us get out of
this unjust situation where you make all the profit while we bear all
the risk.
Sincerely,
Mike O'Brien
Seattle City Councilmember
