Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown and New York Attorney General Letitia James led a coalition of 14 attorneys general to oppose a request to ship cryogenic liquefied ethane in rail tank cars from Pennsylvania to locations across the United States, Canada, and Mexico, according to a Feb. 21 press release.
The attorneys general pointed to potential dangers, saying that “any release of cargo” would likely lead to unique safety risks to nearby communities and emergency first responders.
An additional point of concern was the failure of the company to define where their shipments would be delivered. The attorneys general asserted that the proposed shipments “would risk the safety of communities along rail lines nationwide,” saying the application failed to identify operational controls that would decrease the risk of derailment.
“Without a more specific description of the destinations for these shipments, PHMSA will be unable to determine whether the permit is in the public interest,” the letter stated.
Brown, James, and their colleagues specifically voiced concern about the potential of the rail cars moving through “overburdened communities, particularly along the U.S. Gulf Coast.”
“The PHMSA has a duty to deny Gas Innovations’ anemic application for a special permit to transport ethane by rail car because it simply does not provide for public safety,” Brown said in the press release. “The application’s vagueness makes it impossible to determine whether already overburdened communities will be asked to bear the brunt of those safety concerns, and it renders fair and equitable treatment of those communities to an afterthought. Approval of this application would be a serious blow to environmental justice.”
Brown and James were joined by the attorneys general of the District of Columbia, Delaware, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.
Their letter of opposition comes on the heels of nationwide concern about the fallout over a train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, that caused a toxic chemical spill.
Brown’s office declined to provide further comment.
