Derailing Ethanol

The Chelsea Creek Action Group’s Campaign to Stop Ethanol Transport by Train

September 25, 2013John Walkey and Kim Foltz

The Chelsea Creek Action Group

A coalition of residents from East Boston and Chelsea transforming the Chelsea Creek into a

resource for our communities

Chelsea, East Boston and Revere are already home to ALL of the jet fuel used

at Logan Airport, 70% - 80% of the Region’s heating fuel, road salt for hundreds of cities in New England

Environmental Justice Burdens…

…Plus an Ethanol Terminal?

Who is Global Oil?

$6.8$9.0

$5.8$7.8

$14.8$17.6

2007

2008

2010

2011

2009

Sales ($ in billions)

Chelsea location on lower Broadway

Revere Location on Route 1A

2012

What Did Global Propose?

• 1 mile long trains (60-100 cars), 2-3 deliveries per week

• Each train will hold 1.8-3 million gallons of ethanol per trip resulting in 2.8 million-4.68 million gallons annually

• Trains running on commuter rail lines 12AM – 5AM

Possible Routes

Recent Derailments in MassachusettsFebruary 2013 – Freight train, Springfield – hazardous liquidAugust 2012 – Commuter Rail, Belmont Center – on the Fitchburg Line!August 2011 – Freight train, Stockbridge – 12 cars of a 2000-foot trainJune 2011 – Freight train, Taunton – caused by sabotage of the tracksMay & June 2011 – Freight, South Amherst – two derailments in a month

South Amherst, 2011 Stockbridge, 2011

Montana: 16 rail cars caught fire & 6 exploded . Part of 106-car train traveling at 23 mph. "It was a chain reaction of one car catching fire and another car catching fire as well." “The heat felt like your eyebrows were going to singe.”

Columbus, Ohio: Derailment, after 2 a.m., caused 90,000 gallons of ethanol to catch fire and explode. “Created a huge fireball” and “Flames seen for miles”

“The heat was so intense it was suffocating. It felt like it was 400 degrees. “I’m grateful that this did not occur in a more populated area”

Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman

Tiskilwa, Illinois 26 cars derail · October, 2011

Columbus, Ohio 3 explode and burn · July, 2012

Many Recent Ethanol Train Accidents

Ethanol: A “different animal” for firefighters

Montana August, 2012

“Ethanol is a much different animal than gasoline or the other hydrocarbon based fuels we have been accustomed and trained to manage”

“In an urban community... Life, safety and exposure concerns are exponentially higher”

“The consequences of not fully investigating this are too high”

2012 Testimony by Boston Fire Marshall

Public Safety: Air Quality/Traffic Impacts

Global is likely to transport final ethanol + gasoline mix by truck. The final volume of product is estimated to be 2.8 – 4.68 billion gallons.

That will require 280,800 – 468,000 trucks per year leaving Global’s Revere facility or5400 – 9000 trucks per week 769 – 1282 trucks per day 32 -53 trucks per hour, every hour of the day.

This will increase air pollution by:• PM (lb):10,377.61• NOx (lb): 195,317.26• VOC (lb):23,099.58• CO2 (ton):19,437.00

The volume of truck traffic also will severely impact safety on our roads.

“Documents found in the US raid on Osama bin Laden's compound indicate that Al Qaeda was plotting an attack on the US rail system”

~Christian Science Monitor, May 6, 2011Long before papers found at Osama bin Laden's Pakistani hideout revealed a plot to attack U.S. railroads, security experts warned that the nation's 140,000 miles of track presented an attractive—and difficult to protect—terror target.…The much-larger freight-railroad system also presents a daunting set of security challenges. Hazardous materials crisscross the U.S. and pass through major cities, often on tracks protected by little more than no-trespassing signs.

~Wall Street Journal, May 11, 2011Menlo, Iowa June 12, 2011“Miller said the switch tampering, and the creation of the gap in the tracks, clearly indicated to him that someone was trying to derail one of the 130-car trains that were running the track last Sunday.” ABC News

Public Safety: Terrorist Threats

Possible Routes

The Hit List

• Revere• Chelsea• Everett• Boston• Somerville• Cambridge• Belmont• Waltham• Weston• Lincoln• Concord• Acton

Massachusetts Towns Through which the Trains Would Have Passed on the Commuter Rail Lines Alone:

•Tewksbury• Lowell• Malden• Melrose• Wakefield• Reading•Newton• Wellesley• Natick• Framingham• Ashland• Southborough

• Westborough• Grafton• Worcester

• Boxborough• Littleton• Ayer• Shirley• Lunenberg• Leominster• Fitchburg• Medford• Winchester• Woburn• Wilmington• Billerica

Over 1 million people live within ½ mile of the proposed train route in Massachusetts!

Example One Mile Radius Evacuation Areas

Since 1996:• 57 spills of petroleum products and other

hazardous materials• Nearly 50,000 gallons polluting the soil and the

Chelsea Creek

Global Oil’s Record on the Chelsea Creek

March, 2006: Global Oil and Irving Oil responsible for a spill of 18,000 gallons of diesel oil into the Chelsea Creek.

Launch of EthaNOl Campaign• Dozens testified at Revere Conservation Commission•Letter to Com Comm signed by 60 residents•1000+ postcards collected•Testified at DEP Chapter 91 Hearing•Many many community meetings• Held meetings with state representatives and senators

EthaNOl Campaign: First victory•Amendment to the MA Transportation Bond Bill passed, August 2012 after hundreds of residents expressed concerns •Mandated that DEP could not issue Global Oil a permit before a public safety study was completed by MassDOT

•MassDOT to issue a public safety study on March 23, 2013•Sponsored by local state senators and representatives

EthaNOl Campaign: Public Safety Study•Two CCAG Members appointed to Advisory Group overseeing study•But Industry represented as well! •Opportunity to engage more residents, stakeholders, public officials in creating long-term solution•Collected input in multiple public meetings conducted by MassDOT

EthaNOl Campaign Continues•Outreach to cities and towns along ethanol routes•Working with legislative champions on new state legislation•Meetings with local, state, federal agencies

•Common responses:• Interstate commerce, federal

pre-emption• My agency has no jurisdiction• We’re transporting worse stuff

than ethanol already

• July, 2013 Ethanol Amendment to MA Budget Bill passes Joint Ways and Means Committee, goes to Governor’s desk

• Global Oil immediately withdraws application for Chapter 91 license: “We surrender!”

EthaNOl Campaign: Major Victory

EthaNOl Campaign Still Continues•Nothing YET signed into law•Global Oil or any other company could relaunch plans to bring ethanol by train•Meetings with Governor, Speaker DeLeo, legislative allies will continue until a new bill is signed into law

• Reaching out to new communities can increase impact but adds management challenges

• Importance of perseverance

• Impact of personal stories

• Power of legal expertise coupled with grassroots advocacy

Lessons Learned

Thank you!