The Fertilizer Institute on March 12 issued a pointed response to recent statements made by the Association of American Railroads calling on chemical companies to stop manufacturing dangerous chemicals that AAR claims can be “replaced by safer substitutes or new technologies.”
The AAR statement came in the wake of a Feb. 26 hearing before the House Homeland Security Committee on the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Act of 2008. “We can no longer continue to risk the lives of millions of Americans by using, transporting and storing highly toxic chemicals when there are safer alternatives commercially available,” said AAR President and CEO Edward Hamberger. “It is time for the nation’s big chemical companies to stop making the dangerous chemicals that can be replaced by safer substitutes or new technologies currently in the marketplace.”
The statement was the latest volley from a railroad industry that no longer wants to transport toxic-by-inhalation products such as chlorine and anhydrous ammonia. AAR has actively lobbied Congress to limit its liability in the event of accidents involving these chemicals, or to remove altogether its common carrier obligation to transport TIH materials. Railroad companies have also drastically raised their fees for hauling TIH chemicals.
Without mentioning anhydrous ammonia specifically, Hamberger said “the threat of a terrorist attack would be greatly reduced and America would be a safer place” if chemical companies stopped manufacturing dangerous products or used safer technologies as substitutes. “Railroads would no longer be required by the federal government to transport some of the most highly toxic chemicals around the country,” he said. “Millions of Americans who live in cities or towns near chemical plants or railroad tracks would be safer. Trucks filled with those toxic chemicals would no longer be on our roads and highways. And many manufacturing facilities and water treatment plants would no longer store large quantities of the very chemicals that make attractive targets for terrorists.”
Hamberger concluded the AAR statement by tersely calling on “the big chemical companies to do their part to help protect America. They should stop manufacturing dangerous chemicals when safer substitutes are available. And if they won’t do it, Congress should do it for them in the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Act of 2008.”
TFI last week said it takes “vigorous exception” to Hamberger’s remarks. “Chemicals, such as anhydrous ammonia fertilizer, are essential to growing food for millions of Americans,” TFI said in its March 12 statement. Noting the role of anhydrous ammonia in the production of urea, UAN, DAP, and MAP, as well as its many industrial uses, TFI said there is simply not a substitute for the product.
“Ammonia is the least costly and most effective source of nitrogen fertilizer for American farmers,” TFI said. “It is the cheapest source of nitrogen on a per-pound basis and corn is the largest consumer of direct applied anhydrous ammonia. One railcar of ammonia produces approximately 128,000 bushels of corn, which can be used to feed approximately 1,600 head of beef or produce 345,600 gallons of ethanol. It is clear that ammonia plays a major role in meeting the nation’s food and energy needs.”
TFI also pointed out the fertilizer industry’s safety record with regard to anhydrous ammonia. “TFI’s ammonia shipping members take seriously their obligation to safely and securely store and transport anhydrous ammonia,” said TFI President Ford West. “Our members are actively working within the framework of the Federal Railway Administration rulemaking process to develop new tank cars for ammonia, they are engaged in rigorous training of emergency responders, and they have worked closely with Congress, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency, and other federal and state agencies on safety and security issues for anhydrous ammonia. We are proud of our safety record.”
West concluded TFI’s statement with some saber rattling of his own, noting that the deadly railroad accidents in Minot, N.D., in 2002 and in Graniteville, S.C, in 2005 were deemed by the National Transportation Safety Board to be the result of railroad operational and infrastructure failures. The Minot derailment resulted in an ammonia spill that killed one local resident, while the Graniteville accident caused a release of chlorine gas that killed nine.
“Perhaps the public would be served better if the railroads were required to ensure that they are doing everything possible to keep rail tank cars safely on the tracks,” West said. “The TFI suggests that the AAR refocus its efforts on doing whatever is necessary to continue the safe and secure delivery of these critical materials. TFI and its ammonia shippers remain committed to working closely with the AAR and its railroad members in these efforts.”