Drafter
Clerk 06/17/2014
Title
A MOTION related to: petroleum transport by rail through King County; an updated emergency management plan to specifically address the risk from increased transport of Bakken formation petroleum transport by rail; and railroad company partnership to identify and mitigate risks, and to jointly plan and train for an emergency response.
Body
WHEREAS, the region's railway network is fundamental to King County's manufacturing and shipping economy, and is an environmentally responsible method of moving passengers and freight, and
WHEREAS, new technologies have resulted in the production of historic amounts of domestic and foreign petroleum, which will significantly increase the volume of petroleum and petroleum products moving by rail through Washington, and
WHEREAS, the state of Washington is a destination for petroleum produced in western states, due to its refining capacity and proximity to shipping infrastructure, and
WHEREAS, the volume of petroleum-by-rail moving through King County to petroleum refineries in northwestern Washington is expected to triple to over one million barrels per week, and
WHEREAS, the primary source of the petroleum anticipated to be transported by rail through King County is from the Bakken formation, which the U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration has warned is more explosive than traditional crude oil, and
WHEREAS, rail companies operating in Washington state are committed to the safe transport of commodities and freight, and according to the Federal Railroad Administration in 2013 had one of their safest operating years in history despite growing volume of cargo, and
WHEREAS, the rail lines that carry petroleum run through King County's rural and urban cities, our neighborhoods and parks, business and industrial areas, near schools, sporting arenas and stadiums, through our mountain passes, atop our watersheds and along our waterfron...
Click here for full text