Chemical Shippers Seek Tank Car Rule Exemption

The chemical industry is urging the Department of Transportation to revise its recently issued tank car rule, saying new retrofitting requirements should apply only to railcars carrying crude oil and ethanol. The rule establishes new safety standards for trains carrying flammable liquids, including a schedule for retrofitting or replacing existing tank cars with a sturdier model (C&EN, May 25, page 29). In an appeal filed by the American Chemistry Council (ACC), the industry group says the rule’s tank car requirements should apply only to shipments of flammable liquids that “pose the highest risk,” namely crude oil and ethanol. ACC notes that liquid chemicals are shipped in relatively small quantities on trains carrying a variety of different products. In contrast, crude oil and ethanol are moved in large blocks of tank cars. DOT has concluded that these so-called unit trains are more difficult to control and are more likely to derail. But ACC argues that the rule is so broad that it potentially applies to all tank cars used to transport flammable liquids.