Plans needed to deal with oil transport
It's critically important for communities to get up to speed when it comes to dealing with the alarming number of crude-oil shipments coming through the area.
Emergency response is a big area of concern. If a full load of crude oil spills in the Hudson River or if a train derailment causes a massive explosion, the environmental damage would be catastrophic, and there could be considerable loss of life.
These scenarios are plainly unacceptable. Yet the media and environmental and government watchdog groups actually had to fight to get government and industry to release basic information about the shipments.
As a result of that victory, the public knows that 15 to 30 trains pass through the Hudson Valley each week, and they can be carrying at least 1 million gallons of crude oil.
While there have been several derailments in New York over the last year or so, the state has been fortunate. None has proven disastrous.
Yet a derailment in Canada last year caused a huge explosion that killed 47 people and caused widespread damage.
The frequency of these shipments has been increasing, and much of this crude oil is coming across the country from Bakken oil fields in North Dakota.
In New York, much of it arrives in Port of Albany and then is shipped by barges down and rails along the Hudson River to coastal refineries.
Communities up and down the river are starting to take more notice. There is a lot of ground to cover, from whether realistic evaluation plans are in place, to whether emergency personnel have been trained on the best techniques to fight an oil fire.
While emergency officials consider such matters, the public must continue to push for better and stronger industry standards that would lessen the chance of a spill. That includes prohibiting old rail cars from carrying crude oil and forcing industry to make necessary equipment upgrades. It's also imperative that government shows it is serious by conducting robust inspections and increasing penalties for violations.
While private oil and transportation companies are seeing a boon, too often taxpayers are left paying a steep price.
About five years ago, fewer than 10,000 carloads of crude oil were being moved by rail; last year, the figure exceeded 400,000, according to the Association of American Railroads.
Sweeping changes are needed to keep up with the growing risks. The government's response has been slow but must gain ground quickly.