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Justin Mikulka

Bomb Trains: How Industry Greed and Regulatory Failure Put the Public at Risk Paperback – July 1, 2019

by Justin Mikulka (Author)

4.5 18 ratings

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In 2013 a runaway train loaded with crude oil from North Dakota’s Bakken region derailed and exploded in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec—destroying the downtown area and killing 47 people. This was the first of many oil trains that began derailing and exploding across North America as oil companies ramped up shipping a glut of fracked oil by train. Serving in lieu of pipelines, the trains carrying volatile oil soon gained the nickname “bomb trains” from rail operators.

These trains continue to pass through small towns and major cities every day, putting an estimated 25 million people in North America at risk. The U.S. and Canadian regulatory systems, corrupted by industry influence, enabled a variety of risk factors that led to these “bomb trains.”

While the system was broken then, prospects for government oversight have gotten significantly worse in the Trump administration. Under President Trump, critical regulatory roles have been filled by former rail executives, and federal agencies have rolled back the few meaningful protections meant to avoid another oil spill or fatal disaster. Investigative journalist Justin Mikulka tells the story of how we got here, the communities fighting back, and where we could go next in an attempt to defuse the next “bomb train.”

“A richly researched, well-written, hugely important case study in the peril the public faces when federal agencies are captured by the industries they’re supposed to regulate. Profits and body count go up while public safety and confidence in government go down.” Marcus Stern, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist

"Justin Mikulka at DeSmog has been the indispensable journalist for all wrestling with the crude oil train crisis in North America in the last five years. His new book Bomb Trains... outlines some needed concrete ways forward on rail safety, as well as valuable ammunition from a significant public safety sector for those who would insist on the need for fundamental political changes.” Fred Millar, rail safety consultant

"[Bomb Trains] is an invaluable resource for understanding how regulations get made; how they get blocked, delayed, diluted, reversed, etc. Its insights are a major contribution to understanding the power of the railroad and the petroleum industries, the acquiescence of the regulators, and the political accomplices. And how invariably profit trumps safety."Bruce Campbell, author of The Lac-Mégantic Rail Disaster: Public Betrayal, Justice Denied

Print length

220 pages
Language

English
Publication date

July 1, 2019
Dimensions

6 x 0.55 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

1072181339
ISBN-13

978-1072181330
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Bruce Campbell
29
Paperback
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Independently published (July 1, 2019)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 220 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1072181339
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1072181330
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.8 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.55 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,256,782 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #676 in Railroads (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.5 18 ratings

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Justin Mikulka

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Justin Mikulka is an investigative journalist for the independent news and research organization DeSmog. For the past five years, Justin has reported on the growing threat of explosive oil and ethanol trains in North America.

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4.5 out of 5

18 global ratings

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Arse74

Well-researched, but intense advocacy bias diminishes the final product

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 12, 2019

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The book describes the evolution of Bakken oil and the "bomb trains". The author has dug deeply into the regulatory process and its flaws. The author dismisses pushback by railroads against specific regulations without explaining industry concerns. For example, ECP brakes are discussed at length. Railroads have argued that: 1) most of the benefit and improved train handling from ECP were achieved through distributed power, 2) ECP brakes introduce tremendous logistical challenges, e.g., maintaining separate fleets of equipped and non-equipped trains. These concerns are not mentioned and railroad resistance is blindly chalked up to "greed" and "madness". Also, while the heyday of bomb trains was 2013-2015, no mention is made of the near non-occurrence of incidents in recent years (0 in 2017, 1 in 2018, 0 in 2019 so far) . The improvement was brought about by the implementation of technical solutions that reduced risk. Were the earlier risks and catastrophic explosions preventable? Probably so, but the real lessons to be learned are clouded in the book by over-reaching environmental advocacy.

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Gerri S.

Extraordinarily Well-Researched Unbiased Coverage

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 6, 2019

Verified Purchase

I was first indoctrinated in the issue of crude-by-rail transport May of 2014 when I learned what rail cars rolling beside my home were carrying. At a time when the government said nothing when confronted, author Justin Mikulka of DeSmog was one of the few sources I could go to for valid information. Years later, after reading "Bomb Trains", I'm pleased to see that Mikulka continues to accurately convey government, regulatory, industry, and public perspectives regarding the dangers and challenges associated with the transport of hazardous materials. The author does an excellent job of linking this issue with the nation's political context. As I read through the pages, I've been able to establish over 70 crude-by-rail legislative opportunities, which is ridiculous! Only by identifying and understanding government, regulatory, and industry breakdown can we begin to breath new life into this and many such issues through reorganization and legislative repair. This book is a great place to start!

In reference to comments below:

There are children attending schools yards from rail corridor where explosive and toxic hazardous materials are transported. When an industry is willing to jeopardize human life, including the lives of CHILDREN, for the sake of profits - record profits - with a historical unwillingness to invest in safety measures that disrupt their profits, the only rational conclusion one can come to is greed and madness. The author documented all perspectives.

"...no mention is made of the near non-occurrence of incidents in recent years (0 in 2017, 1 in 2018, 0 in 2019 so far). The improvement was brought about by the implementation of technical solutions that reduced risk." Just for the record, these improvements were brought about when industry lobbyists and politicians passed legislation enacting the Fast Act Transportation Bill (2015), allocating $305B public tax dollars to private industry - the rail industry bought themselves a new fleet of tank cars with our money! I know this because I saw the decrepit condition of tankers rolling past my home prior to the passing of this legislation.

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Mark Nichols

"Bomb Trains" a real eye-opener

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 17, 2019

Verified Purchase

Mikulka's book clearly identifies the issues of regulatory capture and institutional malfeasance that underlie the present situation we're in. Namely, the lack of meaningful action by our federal government, to address the numerous issues that amplify the uncontrolled risk of derailments of freight trains hauling huge quantities of hazardous materials, that imperil cities and towns across America, and have already produced severe environmental degradation, due to massive leaks and spills of oil and other substances. there are also stories of how communities have fought against the tide of misinformation and inertia, to achieve some significant victories. I encourage you to buy and read this book!

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P. S. Matz

Great read about corporate greed and lack of responsibility.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 19, 2019

Verified Purchase

Mikulka does a great job reviewing the risks that these Bomb Trains pose to us. His investigative reporting is thorough and details numerous examples of the rail and oil industries doing everything they can to avoid implementing safety measures that might cost them any money, even if it means people will die. Having seen those oil rail cars sitting in the middle of a major city waiting to be unloaded, I have a new respect for the risks they pose to all of us.

One person found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

Important read with great reporting from Mikulka

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 16, 2019

Verified Purchase

This is a great book for even those that have followed this issue going back to the years of the Obama administration. Mikulka has reported time and time again for DeSmog about how the oil and rail industry has prevented stronger regulations from taking place, but this book goes deeper and Milkulka adds wonderful context for readers. Quick read too.

One person found this helpful

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S.Neubeck

Bomb Trains a book about railway hazards

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 10, 2019

Verified Purchase

This book along with Bruce Campbell's book on Lac Megantec are important in that both focus on decaying infrastructure, deregulation by both the U.S. and Canadian governments, reduction in crew sizes with longer trains, and industry'S lacklustre performance in improving the situation despite record profits.

One person found this helpful

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Benjamin B Jervey

Authoritative chronicle of an underreported issue of vital importance

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 27, 2019

Verified Purchase

The is a startling read. It's unbelievable how one of the most dangerous industrial practices--transporting wildly combustible petroleum products by train--is essentially regulated by the industry itself. Which obviously isn't working. A horror story that happens to be a true tale of regulatory capture.

One person found this helpful

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Max Andersen

Eye opening and sobering

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 3, 2019

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Eye opening and sobering accounts of how little the railroad industry actually cares about safety. It shows how the death and destruction caused by train derailments can be directly linked to decisions that fought safety regulations, and it is only getting worse.

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Top reviews from other countries

KennelKing

Great read

Reviewed in Australia 🇦🇺 on July 5, 2020

Verified Purchase

work in rail safety, and have worked in regulation. this is a great study on regulatory capture, regulatory failure, and on risk management in the US rail industry. Has been a very useful read in understanding numerous hazards in rail operations, how the (US) industry has not led on safety, making a joke of the "ZERO ACCIDENT" philosophy many seem to peddle.

Provides numerous references to sources, some of which are in their own right, very good reading.

Watcher

Clearly explained dangers of regulatory capture by industry.

Reviewed in Australia 🇦🇺 on October 11, 2020

Verified Purchase

A terrifying expose of what happens when an industry controls its putative regulators. This is where economic fundamentalism leads and it's only becoming worse under far right, populist governments.

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