BNSF Train Derailment/Explosion near Casselton

[UNDBIZ]

http://blogs.marketwatch.com/energy-ticker/2013/12/31/buffetts-year-end-bet-pipelines/

[siouxforeverbaby]

Guy needs to unthaw his sewer vent

Not necessarily....you used to be able to keep a match lit under the water in my hometown...and I believe that you still can in the town where I went to high school.

[ScottM]

Maybe that's why a majority of oil transported on land is via Pipeline...It would be nice to think once that people would use common sense instead of political wrangling to do what is right for Americans and ND in particular.

That's not entirely true, especially for North Dakota.

http://online.wsj.co...J_WSJ_US_News_5

I suspect we'll see more of these incidents as more oil is transported by rail on deficient infrastructure.

[ericpnelson]

Not necessarily....you used to be able to keep a match lit under the water in my hometown...and I believe that you still can in the town where I went to high school.

Wouldn't the fire be a little more consistent if it came from a consistent stream of water? That kind of why I thought I was sewer gas. Regardlessno part of me believes its from fracking, but admittedly I work for an oilfield service company.

[petey23]

Did you see the article/YouTube video of the guy in north Dakota lighting his tap water on fire!!

Saw that. Pretty wild.

Ever tried it? I guess you can do that in several areas all around the state of ND.

[Cratter]

No, Never thought of trying to light water on fire. Haha

Care for a drink?

[fightingsioux4life]

I was one of the refugees. Living in the Twin Cities until I could come back.

I was stuck in Minot for two weeks. The city I returned to bore no resemblance to the city I left.

[Siouxman]

If you are referring to the Keystone Pipeline it will do nothing for Americans. Canadian oil transported to the gulf to be turned into diesel and shipped right out to China and India. Don't even start on the jobs aspect since that FauxNews talking point has been debunked time and time again.

Do not think that the Keystone project as proposed is the end of it. It needs U.S. government approval since it crosses the border. The more complex the project, the more difficult the approval. The pipeline will be able to move more oil than the current proposal. As soon as it is in operation, there will be proposals to tap into it in ND to increase the outflow of oil. Just a relatively few years ago the Alliance Natural Gas Pipeline came through ND. It was a special bullet line project that would carry a number of gaseous products all mixed together and would not be tapped between source and sink, because a tap would require processing equipment to separate the products out. And within just a couple of years of start of operation, the line was being tapped. Start simple, get through the red tape, and then modify. That is the strategy.

[Siouxman]

Did you see the article/YouTube video of the guy in north Dakota lighting his tap water on fire!!

They've been doing it in ND for about 100 years. It is naturally occurring methane that is in the water. It is nothing new. It is also common in some other states, and has no connection to oil or gas development.

[Cratter]

But what about the study that says it increases with fracking?

http://m.pnas.org/content/early/2013/06/19/1221635110

Must be pure coincidence people near the oil fields has a higher concentration of methane than me in grand forks.

Hundred years ago it happened but I'm sure it wasn't that well known as it is today thanks to the internets.

[UNDBIZ]

But what about the study that says it increases with fracking?

http://m.pnas.org/co...6/19/1221635110

Must be pure coincidence people near the oil fields has a higher concentration of methane than me in grand forks.

Well we all know what's underground in Grand Forks is the same as what's underground in the OIL FIELDS.........

[Siouxman]

http://www.grandforksherald.com/event/article/id/281285/

[cberkas]

But what about the study that says it increases with fracking?

http://m.pnas.org/co...6/19/1221635110

Must be pure coincidence people near the oil fields has a higher concentration of methane than me in grand forks.

Hundred years ago it happened but I'm sure it wasn't that well known as it is today thanks to the internets.

Its also found near coal vains like the Tongue River in Montana and Wyoming.

[ScottM]

http://news.yahoo.com/railcars-north-dakota-crude-train-crash-older-less-012822688--sector.html

What's the over/under before there's another rail accident like this?

[runaroundsioux]

http://www.walkinbea...statistics.html

You take the opinion of an anti pipeline website to back up your opinion?

[ringneck28]

All I have to say is they better make some changes. I live in Mandan and 3 houses from the train yard. Every day that a train with oil goes either direction on BNSF it passes less than a block from my house. Have I thought of the worse possibly happening? Of course, but this has me really thinking now. Then to make matters worse, Mandan allows fireworks. Really? Talk about a bunch of smart city leaders. Last night after every boom, I was jumpy.

[Hayduke]

All I have to say is they better make some changes. I live in Mandan and 3 houses from the train yard. Every day that a train with oil goes either direction on BNSF it passes less than a block from my house. Have I thought of the worse possibly happening? Of course, but this has me really thinking now. Then to make matters worse, Mandan allows fireworks. Really? Talk about a bunch of smart city leaders. Last night after every boom, I was jumpy.

Is BNSF the only company shipping oil by train in Nodak? Kind of wondering if it is coming down through Canadian Pacific?

[runaroundsioux]

Live in western ND. I'd say BNSF ships 90% or more of ND crude as CP rail only goes as far west as Minot. CP enters U.S.at Portal ND. There is a transloading facility near Columbus,ND on a shortline railroad that ties in with the CP at Flaxton.

[ringneck28]

Live in western ND. I'd say BNSF ships 90% or more of ND crude as CP rail only goes as far west as Minot. CP enters U.S.at Portal ND. There is a transloading facility near Columbus,ND on a shortline railroad that ties in with the CP at Flaxton.

We have a cabin up near New Town and CP is the train that ships oil from New Town. It goes East from there to who knows where.

[ringneck28]

Is BNSF the only company shipping oil by train in Nodak? Kind of wondering if it is coming down through Canadian Pacific?

BNSF owns the rail that runs parallel to I 94. There is a loading area by Beulah that brings oil to Mandan. There is another in Dickinson that goes both directions. All I know is everyday, I see hundreds upon hundreds of oil cars pass my house.

[runaroundsioux]

Forgot about the one at NewTown it is CP,they also load a few cars at Donnybrook on CP. The BN mainline runs from Minot to Stanley to Williston. Lots of transloads on that. Big one at Stanley.

[runaroundsioux]

The grain elevators can't get cars to ship our grain up here as oil has taken priority over grain. We need pipelines. Also,we've been able to light our city water on fire since they dug the wells 100 years ago.No big deal in this part of the state.That video was just another example of anti-fracking,anti-oil, disinformation and hysteria. This may come as a shock to some of you but don't believe everything you see on the internet.

[MafiaMan]

If you are referring to the Keystone Pipeline it will do nothing for Americans. Canadian oil transported to the gulf to be turned into diesel and shipped right out to China and India. Don't even start on the jobs aspect since that FauxNews talking point has been debunked time and time again.

I'm curious what MSNBC's take on the pipeline is...tuned in to see but they were busy critiquing the Mitt Romney family photo. I guess that's unbiased news these days...lean forward.

[Hayduke]

Live in western ND. I'd say BNSF ships 90% or more of ND crude as CP rail only goes as far west as Minot. CP enters U.S.at Portal ND. There is a transloading facility near Columbus,ND on a shortline railroad that ties in with the CP at Flaxton.

I would imagine looking at the RR map that CP just ships it into Canada from the Bakken basin. LIke the one that blew up last year. Thanks for the info!

[sprig]

Don't believe the state has made this information disappear, but tests near Lignite show elevated levels of oil contaminants in both the ground and surface waters. These contaminants come specifically from shale cuttings, which end up as the "mud" in reserve pits. The contaminants are elements normally present in just trace amount on the surface and in ground water, but alarmingly high in reserve pit mud. Those include selenium, cadmium, barium, beryllium, and arsenic. The tests were done in an area with lots of earlier oil exploration in the Madison shale, have not seen anything done with the Bakken shale, but the change in going away from pits to closed loop drilling is probably indicative that the state knows the contamination the exploration has/was creating. When reserve pits were recently "reclaimed", the "mud" was hauled form the pits up slope to the high points and buried near the surface. What a perfect place to continue contaminating the area. Since this is a top durum producing area, I'd suggest staying away from pasta produced from crops here.

I won't even get into salt contamination that has occurred over large areas from the oil development out here, as bad as it is, it's minor compared to the "unknown" poisons/carcinogen contamination. As far as pipelines are concerned, a huge network of pipelines were put in place in the 60's and 70', flow lines from wells to treaters, saltwater lines from treaters to injection wells, gas lines to gas plants, and oil lines to major oil pipelines. It took nearly 50 years for those lines to start leaking as so many have recently, yet new pipelines have been breaking and leaking within 5 years of construction. We just refuse to slow down and do things safely when there is so much money to be made.