North Dakota: Treat Bakken crude for transport
Written by Douglas John BowenNorth Dakota has ordered producers of oil from the Bakken shale field to begin removing flammable natural gas liquids from the product before crude-by-rail (CBR) transport to other locations.
The state, announcing the move Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2014, has come under criticism from environmentalists for being lax in its oversight of the Bakken production process, including regulation of rail transport, most notably by BNSF.
The new regulations, ordered by the North Dakota Industrial Commission, will require CBR product to be processed through mandated pressures and temperatures to aid in removing butane, propane, and other flammable liquids, according to The New York Times.
If the plan proves successful, CBR transported products will have roughly an equivalent volatility to that of automotive gasoline products, which would reduce the hazardous effects of an accident, state regulators said.
“The North Dakota Industrial Commission reiterates the importance of making Bakken crude oil as safe as possible for transportation,” said the commission and North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple in a joint statement. “this order will bring every barrel of Bakken crude within standards to improve the safety of oil for transport.”
The new procedure does not directly address the issue of tank car safety, particularly older DOT-111 tank cars, observers noted.
