CLEVELAND, March 31 — The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) and Representative Edward Markey (D-MA) today expressed outrage over the Department of Homeland Security’s announcement today that it was issuing voluntary security guidelines for railroad companies that transport the most hazardous chemicals in the United States.
The BLET, as a member of the Teamsters Rail Conference, has publicly expressed concern about glaring security oversights on the nation’s railroads. Those concerns were summarized in the Teamsters’ report, “High Alert: Workers Warn of Security Gaps on Nation’s Railroads.”
Today, the Department of Homeland Security attempted to address some of those security concerns. However, its security plan is merely a suggestion — it is nothing more than a list of voluntary measures that railroad companies may implement if they so choose.
“The Bush administration dropped the ball on this important national security issue,” BLET National President Don Hahs said. “Our members are the first line of defense when it comes to the security of America’s railroads, and the Bush administration’s rail security plan issued today has let them down.”
While the security guidelines issued by the Bush administration note that many hazardous materials carried by rail “have the potential of causing significant numbers of fatalities and injuries if intentionally released in an urban environment,” the document also states that “All measures are voluntary.”
Rep. Edward Markey, (D-MA) is the author of legislation that would require the Department of Homeland Security to impose additional security requirements for shipments of extremely hazardous materials, including re-routing of such shipments around areas that raise particular security concerns whenever possible. The legislation was recently adopted as an amendment to H.R. 4439, a bill to reorganize the Transportation Security Administration, during a Homeland Security Subcommittee markup.
Rep. Markey also spoke at the Teamsters press conference when the “High Alert” study was made public.
“Today’s announcement is an early April Fool’s joke,” Rep. Markey said. “This Administration says, ‘we have new security guidelines — April Fools!’
“Unfortunately, this joke of a proposal has deadly serious consequences for the security of toxic chemicals transported across our nation’s rail network. The Bush Administration motto continues to be ‘In Industry We Trust,’ and today’s notice is the latest example of the Bush Administration letting companies decide just what security precautions should be taken. This Administration is doing nothing more than asking industry to do us a favor and please protect the public — this is an abdication of its responsibility to the American people.”
Each day hundreds of thousands of shipments of extremely hazardous materials travel through densely populated areas and near critical infrastructure such as bridges and power plants. Enough chlorine to kill 100,000 people in half an hour is routinely contained in a single rail tanker car that rolls right through crowded urban centers without adequate security protection.
In 2003, an Ohio-based Al Qaeda operative was arrested for plotting to collapse a bridge in New York City or derail a train in Washington, D.C. He has since pled guilty. Last year, an accidental crash of a Norfolk Southern train containing chlorine in Grantieville, S.C., killed 9 people and caused hospitalizations and widespread evacuations.
Homeland Security Committee Democrats will be sending a letter to the Administration expressing concern over the new voluntary guidelines. For a copy of the Bush Administration security “suggestions,” Rep. Markey’s legislation to improve hazardous materials transportation security and a letter from industry opposing the Markey legislation, please see www.house.gov/markey.
A copy of the “High Alert” report is available on the Teamsters website.