XPost: can.politics, bc.politics, ab.politics   
   XPost: ont.politics, sk.politics   
   From: {~_~}@nyet.ca   
      
   Tell us this could never happen under the likes of the Harper government   
   . . . .      [ಠ益ಠ ]   
   ______________________________________   
      
   April 7, 2014 - The Globe and Mail   
      
      
   Flawed tests play down crude oil's explosiveness   
      
      
   There is suspicion that some shipments of Bakken crude may be more   
   volatile than officials believed         [Bakken crude:  Montana, North   
   Dakota, Saskatchewan and Manitoba]   
      
   As Canada and the United States move to strengthen the rules for   
   transporting crude oil by rail, there is mounting evidence that   
   regulators are relying on tests that underestimate the risk of a fiery   
   explosion like the one that destroyed Lac-Mégantic.   
      
   The current testing regime was not designed for unrefined crude and, as   
   a result, can play down the dangers of shipping some light crude oils,   
   according to industry and transportation experts. A United Nations panel   
   on hazardous materials shared similar concerns last week when it   
   announced that it would review international standards for shipping   
   crude oil, including how crude is tested and classified, in response to   
   a string of recent accidents in North America.   
      
   With the accuracy of the tests in question, there is suspicion that some   
   shipments of Bakken crude may be more volatile than officials believed.   
   It also raises the possibility that light crude oil drawn from other   
   locations in North America is as potentially explosive as crude from the   
   Bakken – but has not been receiving the same level of scrutiny.   
      
   The devastating fire in Lac-Mégantic, Que. last July, began when a train   
   carrying Bakken crude jumped the tracks and exploded in the centre of   
   the small town, killing 47 people. A Globe and Mail investigation showed   
   that oil from the Bakken formation, which straddles North Dakota,   
   Saskatchewan and Manitoba, is more volatile and prone to exploding than   
   conventional forms of crude.   
      
   Crude oil with a high concentration of light ends – such as methane and   
   propane – is "most at risk" of being mischaracterized in standard   
   testing procedures, according to a recent report commissioned by   
   Transport Canada. Those light ends are potentially dangerous because   
   they can ignite and magnify the size of an explosion.   
      
   The inaccuracies underscore how little is known about the risks of   
   shipping crude oil by rail, a practice that has increased dramatically   
   during the past five years and now accounts for an estimated 230,000   
   barrels of oil a day in Canada. Oil is widely known to be flammable, but   
   regulators did not believe until recently that it had the potential to   
   explode and cause the kind of destruction it did in Lac-Mégantic.   
      
   Flash point and boiling point tests, which are required for crude   
   shipments in Canada and the U.S., both have difficulty measuring samples   
   that contain significant concentrations of light ends, according to the   
   report to Transport Canada. Another common test, known as the Reid   
   Vapour Pressure test, has also been criticized for use on crude oil   
   because it can allow light ends to easily vapourize at the time samples   
   are collected from highly volatile crude.   
      
   "When you try to apply [current tests] to samples that have light ends,   
   they don't work as well," said Bob Falkiner, a director for the Canadian   
   Crude Quality Technical Association who also works for Imperial Oil.   
   "You get biased results reported from those test methods because of the   
   lost light ends."   
      
   A spokesperson for Transport Minister Lisa Raitt said the minister is   
   aware of concerns about the crude-testing regime and Transport Canada is   
   "looking at options" related to volatility tests. Speaking with The   
   Globe after an event in Toronto last week, Ms. Raitt also welcomed the   
   UN panel's decision to study crude shipments and testing.   
      
   Producers in the Bakken are expected to stabilize crude oil before   
   shipping it, in a process meant to remove many of the light ends from   
   the rest of the product. Those light ends can be sold separately, but   
   limited transportation infrastructure in the fast-growing Bakken area   
   has led some producers to flare the products instead – which means they   
   simply burn them on the spot. In some cases, flaring has become a "de   
   facto stabilization process," said Bill Lywood, founder and president of   
   Crude Quality Inc.   
      
   However, several industry experts said there is a financial incentive   
   for producers to leave some light ends in the crude – rather than   
   burning them off or selling them separately – because they can increase   
   the overall volume of the crude they are selling. At the same time,   
   because of testing limitations, it can be difficult for producers,   
   shippers and buyers to determine whether enough of the volatile light   
   ends have been stripped away before crude oil is transported across the   
   country.   
      
   In an effort to address the problem, some companies and industry experts   
   are advocating the use of a newer vapour pressure test that uses a   
   sealed, pressurized cylinder to prevent light ends from escaping when a   
   sample is taken.   
      
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    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)