In the last few weeks there have been two derailments of trains carrying crude oil, one in Virginia and one in Colorado, the latest in a string of rail accidents over the past year from Canada to Alabama. While crude oil has been the common denominator in these accidents, ethanol has been caught in the cross fire despite its nearly perfect safety record in rail transportation.
In this interview, Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) president and CEO Bob Dinneen discusses the safety record of ethanol shipments via the DOT-111A railcar, RFA’s program of safety training and best practices within the ethanol industry, and the need to focus on the root cause of recent derailments, track conditions and human error, and not exclusively on railcar design. Most importantly, he emphasizes “ethanol is not oil.”
Interview with RFA president Bob Dinneen on rail safety