Which Way, L.A.?
Oil Trains are Coming to Southern California
Right now, just 1% of the crude oil refined in California gets here by rail. In two years it’ll be 25%, on trains that haul 100 tank cars at a time. But state officials are not disclosing details about train movements in a report provided by railroad companies.
By Warren Olney • • 23m ListenFracking for domestic crude oil is increasing America’s energy independence. But it also means moving domestic crude oil by rail to coastal refineries, including those in Wilmington, Torrance, and El Segundo. Local officials are worried about the health effects of air pollution when tank cars are unloaded. State agencies say they’re not prepared for accidents along the way. Derailments in other states have led to fires so intense that firefighters couldn’t control them. Will that happen here? One legislator calls it inevitable. The state is not disclosing many details—for “security reasons.” Tonight, we’ll find out what we can.
Banner image: Oil tank train, Prestwick (Albert Bridge) / CC BY-SA 2.0
