[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 97 (Wednesday, July 14, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1366]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E1366]]
   EXTREMELY HAZARDOUS MATERIALS TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ACT OF 2004

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. EDWARD J. MARKEY

                           of massaschusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 13, 2004

  Mr. MARKEY. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing the ``Extremely 
Hazardous Materials Transportation Security Act of 2004'', a bill to 
improve safety within our system of transporting dangerous chemicals by 
rail, truck or other vehicle as part of daily commerce in the United 
States. The bill is cosponsored by Reps. McCarthy of Missouri, Rep. 
Grijalva of Arizona, Rep. Case of Hawaii, Rep. Owens of New York, Rep. 
Lee of California, Rep. Tierney of Massachusetts, and Reps. Jackson-Lee 
and Gonzalez of Texas.
  The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, have led to significant 
changes in the level of attention paid to safety and to anti-terrorist 
measures in this country. Nevertheless, every day tank cars pass 
through our urban centers that carry enough chlorine to kill 100,000 
people in half an hour. Although some of these shipments must travel 
the routes they are currently using, others could easily be safely re-
routed.
  We already know that these shipments are attractive terrorist 
targets. An Ohio-based Al Qaeda operative has already been arrested and 
pled guilty for plotting to collapse a bridge in New York City or 
derail a train in DC. And in April, just north of downtown Boston, a 
railroad tank car carrying 20,000 gallons of hydrochloric acid started 
to leak close to the Sullivan rapid transit station and just yards away 
from I-93, causing major chaos to the morning commute. Had that 
incident been a successful terrorist attack rather than an accident 
that harmed no one, many lives could have been lost.
  The bill we are introducing today would require additional security 
measures for all shipments of extremely hazardous materials, and also 
calls for the re-routing of extremely hazardous materials shipments 
going through areas of concern if there is a safer route available, and 
if the shipment's origination or destination is not located within the 
area of concern.
  Specifically, it would require:
  physical security measures surrounding shipments of EHM such as extra 
security guards and surveillance technologies
  pre-notification of EHM shipments for law enforcement authorities
  coordination between Federal, State and local authorities to create a 
response plan for a terrorist attack on an EHM shipment
  the use of currently available technologies to ensure effective and 
immediate communication between shippers of EHM, law enforcement 
authorities and first responders
  re-routing of shipments of EHM that currently travel through areas of 
concern (as defined by the Secretary) only if there is a safer route 
available, and only if the shipment's origination or destination is not 
located within the area of concern
  training for employees who work with EHM shipments
  whistleblower protections for those disclosing violations of security 
rules or regulations
  civil and administrative penalties for those who fail to comply with 
the regulations
  I am attaching a letter of support for this bill from Chief Carter of 
the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Police. While 
this letter addresses a particular hydrochloric acid spill that 
occurred April 14 in the Boston area, it is indicative of the 
difficulty and danger that extremely hazardous chemical shipments can 
pose to our first responder community wherever they live and work. It 
has also been endorsed by Greenpeace, Clean Water Action, Friends of 
the Earth, National Environmental Trust, the Public Interest Research 
Group, and 14 chemical companies.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in seeking to upgrade our defenses in 
this area so that none of our constituents are ever exposed to a 
catastrophic chemical release simply because we failed to take these 
simple steps.

                                                      MBTA Police,
                                        Boston, MA, July 12, 2004.
     Re H.R. ___, A Bill to Direct the Secretary of Homeland 
         Security to Issue Ragulations Concerning the Shipping of 
         Hazardous Material Within, Through, or Near Regions 
         Designated by the Secretary as Areas of Concern
      Hon. Edward Markey,
      House of Representatives, Rayburn House Office Bldg., 
         Washington, DC.
       Dear Congressman Markey: Thank you for inviting me to 
     review and comment upon the proposed H.R. ___ which would 
     direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to draft 
     regulations concerning transportation of hazardous materials 
     through or near geographic areas of concern. I offer my full 
     support for the bill.
       The proposed bill provides a critical framework to 
     strengthen the security of the now extremely vulnerable 
     hazardous material shipment process. Its passage would create 
     reasonable regulation over who is transporting dangerous 
     shipments. how they are transported, and where they are 
     allowed to travel. This bill is but one part of a larger, 
     ever developing process of securing the safety of our 
     citizens and protecting our municipalities.
       Public mass transit and cargo transport are the most 
     critical systems of commerce in the United States of America. 
     In Boston, Massachusetts alone, every day, over six hundred 
     thousand persons utilize the Massachusetts Bay Transportation 
     Authority's (MBTA) system of buses, subways, commuter rail, 
     water shuttles, and para transit services. Each of those 
     persons, and many who do not use mass transit, live, work and 
     travel in close proximity to modalities which constitute 
     hazardous material transport in the form of freight trains, 
     rail tankers, tractor trailers, and harbor bound ships. Each 
     of those forms of transport poses a unique and disturbing 
     challenge to public safety agencies in preventing either an 
     accidental or intentional discharge of dangerous cargo into 
     the local environment.
       For example, on April 14, 2004, a railroad tanker car 
     carrying twenty thousand (20,000) gallons of hydrochloric 
     acid developed a leak while passing quite literally within 
     yards of the Sullivan Square MBTA subway station. This 
     accident required the immediate response of virtually the 
     entire resources of the MBTA Police Department's working 
     officers to monitor pedestrian and vehicle traffic in and 
     around the station.  Also, the resources of the Boston Police 
     Department, Fire Department, and Emergency Medical 
     Services were put to the test in managing traffic, 
     containing the leak, off-loading the remaining cargo, and 
     identifying persons who may have been injured by exposure. 
     For virtually the entire day, the transit infrastructure 
     and most critical city services were critically impeded. 
     Perhaps the most troubling part of that incident is that 
     every day similar cargo is transported on the same rail 
     cargo line, immediately adjacent to commuter rail lines 
     and roadways with no regulation or prior warning of the 
     potential hazard.
        Amazingly, no one was injured or killed as a result of the 
     April 14 leak, but the incident pointed to a threat to the 
     safety and lives of our citizens. Every day, across our 
     nation, local residents are exposed to potential harm by 
     passage through their communities of unknown and unregulateq 
     cargo, chemicals, and hazardous materials. Mass transit 
     modalities share rail lines with dangerous cargo trains; 
     highways and urban centers routinely see cargo trucks and 
     tankers alongside cars, school buses, and public buildings; 
     and working harbors, like Boston and New York, receive huge 
     tankers of liquefied natural gas or similarly volatile cargo. 
     There is, however, no framework to uniformly identify and 
     secure the extremely vulnerable hazardous material shipment 
     process.
        In the shadow of the events of September 11, 2001, we in 
     the law enforcement professions have had to refocus our 
     efforts from crime prevention to include identification of 
     weaknesses in local infrastructure that lends itself to 
     either accidental or intentional harm. Part of the difficulty 
     is that we are hardly ever forewarned, nor do we have the 
     authority to control the hazardous substances that travel 
     though our communities.
        In closing, thank you for inviting my comments on this 
     important issue. Please be assured of my continued support 
     for your efforts on behalf of the Commonwealth of 
     Massachusetts and the United States of America.
            Sincerely,
     Joseph C. Carter, Chief.

                          ____________________