Message From the Editor

On Thursday, the CEO of Norfolk Southern — the company whose train carrying hazardous materials derailed last month in East Palestine, Ohio — appeared before Congress, pledging “to make this right” without committing to paying for long-term clean up or supporting bipartisan legislation to improve rail safety.

And earlier in the week, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced it would investigate Norfolk Southern’s safety practices. But if you’ve been following the work of DeSmog contributor Justin Mikulka, you might know that the NTSB has no enforcement capability, and are probably asking yourself, “Doesn’t the NTSB already know what might have prevented this disaster?”

Justin dove into this question and others in an analysis piece that uses an excerpt from his 2019 book, Bomb Trains, to provide context for the East Palestine disaster.

We also published a piece this week by Dana Drugmand, looking into another agency that is part of the derailment-disaster puzzle: the Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration (PHMSA). This federal agency is tasked with regulating the transport of hazardous materials, whether by rail or pipeline.

The calamity in East Palestine has resurfaced critiques of the agency as a “toothless tiger.” It has also sparked concerns that PHMSA’s “insufficient oversight” could lead to similarly disastrous consequences if a network of proposed carbon dioxide pipelines — which would be under the agency’s purview — is built in the Midwest.

Both pieces provide much-needed context for the unfolding news. If you want to learn even more, dig into Justin’s “Oil Bomb Trains” series.

Have a story tip or feedback? Get in touch: editor@desmog.com. Want to know what our UK team is up to? Sign up for our UK newsletter.

Thanks,
Brendan DeMelle
Executive Director

P.S. Powerful public-interest journalism like this is made possible by readers like you. Can you donate $10 or $20 right now to support more of this essential work?

Image credit: Wavy1 (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

The Railroad Industry Loved Modern Brakes and Safety, Until They Didn’t

— By Justin Mikulka (27 min. read) —

National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) chair Jennifer Homendy concluded that the East Palestine, Ohio, rail disaster was “100% preventable.” The certainty of this statement raises the obvious question: Why did this happen?
The answer was actually provided by one of Homendy’s predecessors at the NTSB. In 2014, speaking about the spate of oil train disasters that were occuring, NTSB chair Deborah Hersman told the Associated Press that, “We know the steps that will prevent or mitigate these accidents. What is missing is the will to require people to do so.”

Following Ohio Derailment, Concerns Arise Over Expansion of Rail and Pipeline Transport of Hazardous Material

— By Dana Drugmand (8 min. read) —

In the aftermath of last month’s toxic train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, questions and concerns about the adequacy of rail safety regulations have resurfaced. The train, owned by Norfolk Southern, was transporting chemicals and other hazardous materials when an overheated wheel bearing led to a catastrophic derailment on February 3. The subsequent disaster response included a localized evacuation and a controlled burn of hazardous substances contained in the derailed tankers, including the carcinogenic chemical vinyl chloride, fouling the air and leaving residents worried about their health and safety upon return.

Liquid Gas Industry Fights to Weaken EU Climate Plans Ahead of Key Vote

— By Phoebe Cooke (8 min. read) —

Liquid gas companies are casting themselves as champions of rural communities in a bid to weaken proposals to slash the carbon emissions produced by heating Europe’s buildings, according to dozens of lobbyist emails seen by DeSmog.

Members of the European Parliament are due to vote next week on a revised version of a key piece of climate legislation known as the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), which governs insulation and other standards for residential and commercial property.

Top U.S. Law Schools Accused of Creating a Student ‘Pipeline’ into Firms Serving Fossil Fuel Industry

— By Dana Drugmand (3 min. read) —

Elite law schools in the United States are disproportionately funneling their students into jobs serving fossil fuel clients, according to a new report published Thursday.

The Law Students for Climate Accountability (LSCA) report finds that the top 20 schools have produced fossil fuel lawyers at more than three times the rate of the average law school, based on the US News & World Report’s law school rankings. Nearly half (49 percent) of the corporate lawyers working for the fossil fuel industry, according to the report’s data set, came from one of the top 20-ranked schools.

Major Gas Utility Is Pouring Money Into Reversing an Oregon City’s Electric-only Mandate

— By Nick Cunningham (8 min. read) —

Oregon’s largest gas utility has funneled nearly a million dollars of cash and in-kind contributions into a campaign to overturn a new electrification mandate in the state’s second-largest city.

Just days after the Eugene City Council voted on February 6 to ban gas hookups in new low-rise residential construction, a group named Eugene Residents for Energy Choice was registered with the Oregon Secretary of State.

From the Climate Disinformation Database: Nigel Farage

Nigel Farage is the former leader and co-founder of the Brexit Party, which he set up ahead of the European Parliament elections in May 2019 to express “anger” over the fact that Britain had not yet withdrawn from the EU and to “change politics for good.” Farage was Vice-chairman of Leave Means Leave, a campaign group set up after the EU referendum to advocate a “hard” Brexit. Other members of Leave Means Leave included figures that have cast doubt on the veracity of climate science and the seriousness of climate change including Owen Paterson, Christopher Chope, Jacob Rees-Mogg and Peter Lilley. Farage has cast doubt on climate science on a number of occasions and both UKIP and the Brexit Party have fielded numerous climate science denying candidates.
Read the full profile and browse other individuals and organizations in our Climate Disinformation Database and Koch Network Database.