[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 100 (Wednesday, May 24, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30019-30020]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-7863]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration


Hazardous Materials: Improving the Safety of Railroad Tank Car 
Transportation of Hazardous Materials

AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), 
DOT.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: PHMSA and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) invite 
interested persons to participate in a public meeting to address the 
safe transportation of hazardous materials in railroad tank cars. PHMSA 
and FRA are initiating a comprehensive review of design and operational 
factors that affect rail tank car safety.

DATES: Public meeting: May 31-June 1, 2006, starting at 9 a.m. and 
ending at 5 p.m. both days.

ADDRESS: Public meeting: The Hotel George, 15 E Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20001.
    Oral presentations: Any person wishing to present an oral statement 
should notify Lucinda Henriksen, by telephone, e-mail, or in writing, 
at least four business days before the date of the public meeting. Oral 
statements will be limited to 15 minutes. For information on facilities 
or services for persons with disabilities or to request special 
assistance at the meetings, contact Ms. Henriksen by telephone or e-
mail as soon as possible.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lucinda Henriksen 
([email protected]), Trial Attorney, Office of Chief Counsel, 
Federal Railroad Administration, 1120 Vermont Ave., NW., Washington, DC 
20590 (202-493-1345) or William S. Schoonover 
([email protected]), Staff Director, Hazardous Materials 
Division, Federal Railroad Administration, 1120 Vermont Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20590, (202-493-6050).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Federal hazardous materials 
transportation law (Federal hazmat law, 49 U.S.C. 5101 et seq., as 
amended by section 1711 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, Public 
Law 107-296 and Title VII of the 2005 Safe, Accountable, Flexible and 
Efficient Transportation Equity Act--A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU)) 
authorizes the Secretary of the Department of Transportation to 
``prescribe regulations for the safe transportation, including 
security, of hazardous material in intrastate, interstate, and foreign 
commerce.'' The Secretary has delegated this authority to the Pipeline 
and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).
    The Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR: 49 CFR parts 171-180) 
promulgated by PHMSA under the mandate in section 5103(b) govern safety 
aspects, including security, of the transportation of hazardous 
material the Secretary considers appropriate. The Hazardous Materials 
Regulations--or HMR--are designed to achieve three goals:
    (1) To ensure that hazardous materials are packaged and handled 
safely during transportation;
    (2) To provide effective communication to transportation workers 
and emergency responders of the hazards of the materials being 
transported; and
    (3) To minimize the consequences of an incident should one occur.
    The hazardous material regulatory system is a risk management 
system that is prevention-oriented and focused on identifying a safety 
or security hazard and reducing the probability and quantity of a 
hazardous material release. We collect and analyze data on hazardous 
materials--incidents, regulatory actions, and enforcement activity--to 
determine the safety and security risks associated with the 
transportation of hazardous materials and the best ways to mitigate 
those risks. Under the HMR, hazardous materials are categorized by 
analysis and experience into hazard classes and packing groups based 
upon the risks they present during transportation. The HMR specify 
appropriate packaging and handling requirements for hazardous 
materials, and require a shipper to communicate the material's hazards 
through use of shipping papers, package marking and labeling, and 
vehicle placarding. The HMR also require shippers to provide emergency 
response information applicable to the specific hazard or hazards of 
the material being transported. Finally, the HMR mandate training 
requirements for persons who prepare hazardous materials for shipment 
or who transport hazardous materials in commerce. The HMR also include 
operational requirements applicable to each mode of transportation.
    The Secretary of Transportation also has authority over all areas 
of railroad

[[Page 30020]]

safety (49 U.S.C. 20101 et seq.), and has delegated this authority to 
FRA. FRA has issued a comprehensive set of Federal regulations 
governing the safety of all facets of freight and passenger railroad 
operations (49 CFR parts 200-244). FRA inspects railroads and shippers 
for compliance with both FRA and PHMSA regulations. FRA also conducts 
research and development to enhance railroad safety.
    Railroads carry over 1.7 million shipments of hazardous materials 
annually, including millions of tons of explosive, poisonous, 
corrosive, flammable and radioactive materials. The need for hazardous 
materials to support essential services means transportation of highly 
hazardous materials is unavoidable. However, these shipments frequently 
move through densely populated or environmentally sensitive areas where 
the consequences of an incident could be loss of life, serious injury, 
or significant environmental damage.
    In the last several years, there have been a number of rail tank 
car accidents in which the car was breached and product lost on the 
ground or into the atmosphere. Of particular concern have been 
accidents involving materials that are poisonous, or toxic, by 
inhalation (TIH materials). For example, on January 18, 2002, in Minot, 
ND, one person was killed and 11 more were seriously injured when a 
Canadian Pacific Railway train derailed. Five tank cars carrying 
anhydrous ammonia catastrophically ruptured, and a vapor plume covered 
the derailment site and surrounding area. On June 28, 2004, in Macdona, 
TX, three people were killed and 41 were seriously injured when a Union 
Pacific freight train struck a BNSF freight train. The collision 
resulted in the breach of a tank car and a release of chlorine, a 
poisonous gas. Property damage and environmental clean-up costs 
exceeded $7 million. On January 6, 2005, in Graniteville, SC, nine 
people were killed and about 75 were seriously injured when Norfolk 
Southern Railway train collided with a standing train, and a tank car 
carrying chlorine was breached. Total damages exceed $6.9 million. In 
each of these incidents, the primary causative factor was railroad 
operations, a failed tank structure, or a combination of the two. Only 
with a full understanding of what happened can the necessary steps for 
prevention and mitigation be identified and implemented.
    PHMSA and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) are initiating 
a comprehensive review of design and operational factors that affect 
rail tank car safety. The two agencies will utilize a risk management 
approach to identify ways to enhance the safe transportation of 
hazardous materials in tank cars, including tank car design, 
manufacture, and requalification; operational issues such as human 
factors, track conditions and maintenance, wayside hazard detectors, 
and signals and train control systems; and emergency response. The 
review will not consider security issues. PHMSA and FRA have been 
working closely with the Transportation Security Administration on 
developing proposed regulations to enhance the security of rail 
shipments of hazardous materials; these regulatory proposals should be 
issued for public comment in the near future.
    The public safety meeting now scheduled for May 31-June 1 is 
intended to kick-off the public involvement in this on-going effort 
within the Department. PHMSA and FRA are primarily looking to this 
meeting to surface issues and prioritize them. In addition, PHMSA and 
FRA will discuss the need for additional public forums and their time 
and place. Persons wishing to make statements will be afforded an 
opportunity to do so and a transcript--to be made available to the 
public--will be taken.

    Issued in Washington, DC on May 18, 2006, under authority 
delegated in 49 CFR part 106.
Robert A. McGuire,
Associate Administrator for Hazardous Materials Safety.
 FR Doc. E6-7863 Filed 5-23-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-60-P