WWGWD
Active member
- Joined
- Sep 26, 2012
- Messages
- 425
- Reaction score
- 127
- Location
- Austin, TX
- Gender
- Female
- Political Leaning
- Progressive
When an oil and gas company screws up, you're calling for their heads. When a railroad company screws up, you're hiding among the crickets. Why is that?
A train derailment in Minnesota spilled 30,000 gallons of oil and no one is screaming for railroad heads on a plate. Is it because the outrage has more to do with the hatred for oil companies, in general? Is it because railroads are the more PC industry among the treehuggers now days? Is it because railroads are unionized and unions don't exist in the oil and gas industry?
Seems like you are trying to change the subject and distract from the actual subject of the discussion, but I'll go with it. I completely agree with you that spills by train are as concerning as pipeline leaks, and rig spills. However, it all comes back to the energy companies commissioning these things. They are all connected, because when it comes right down to it, the energy companies are responsible for the damage the transportation of their product causes. It's all of concern and the penalties for these types of accidents are not substantial enough for companies to change the way they do business. That is a problem.
I'm not calling for anyone's head. The modern world requires oil to function, as of right now. Yet, just because we require it, doesn't give companies a free pass to pay a fine and go back to business as usual. If the system of inspection, regulation, enforcement and penalties is failing, then their needs to be a significant push to fix it. That push could be made, by threatening a revokation of permits if safety procedured aren't improved. It has nothing to do with being PC, defense of unions, or hatred of oil companies. It has to do with ensuring that this industry does what it does as safely as humanly possible. As of right now, their is no motivation to improve existing safety concerns.