The President’s team has made changes in the rules of carriage by rail of flammable materials. In particular, officials have canceled the requirement that trains engaged in the transportation of oil and other flammable substances shall be equipped with expensive brakes.
This rule was introduced by the Obama administration in 2015, after a series of major accidents. Accidents involving oil trains then caused serious damage of ecology and demanded hundreds of millions of dollars for liquidation of consequences.
This rule was introduced by the Obama administration in 2015, after a series of major accidents. Photo: youtube
In the end, the White house decided to equip these compounds reliable brake system that would have significantly reduced the rates of emergency situations. Provided that all convoys are to receive such updates until 2021.
However, the administration of Donald trump conducted a re-analysis of the situation and said that spending on this upgrade exceeds the potential benefit and «economically viable». Officials have canceled an established rule, returning the security to normal.
It is noteworthy that this was done just a week after the Ministry of the interior (United States Department of the Interior — DOI) approved the new environmental regulations designed to reduce emissions of methane and greenhouse gases.
How the President’s team intends to deal with the issue of the safety of trains transporting oil and other flammable materials, is still unknown. At the same time, many experts criticized the White house for such decisions, claiming unhealthy lobbying the interests of large corporations.
