Truckers Petition Feds to Enforce HAZMAT Rules on Oil and Gas Waste

Truckers and environmentalists have joined together to demand Department of Transportation (DOT) agencies enforce existing hazardous material rules when it comes to hauling oilfield waste — including the water and sands used to frack and extract oil and gas. The organizations, led by Truckers Movement for Justice, claim hazardous payloads are often not tested, leaving drivers and communities vulnerable to exposure to hazardous materials.

“These guys put their lives on the line every day, and they deserve the proper training and certifications to handle these hazardous loads,” says Billy Randel, leader of Truckers Movement for Justice and retired hazmat truck driver. “If we start testing the waste coming from the oilfields, we’ll all be safer when we get on the highways. That means justice for the workers and safety for the public.”

The groups allege truck drivers are transporting hazardous oil and gas production and extraction materials without the proper HAZMAT certification. That’s because many truckloads of oil and gas production byproducts are not being tested before they are loaded and transported across U.S. highways and communities. Some truckloads can be more than 2,000 times the threshold for radioactive material under Department of Transportation regulations.

“The hazardous materials laws on the books aren’t being enforced which is seriously concerning for worker and public safety,” says Megan Hunter, senior attorney for Earthjustice. “We’re saying: Follow the rules. Train your truckers. Pay your workers. Keep our highways safer.”

The petition to the DOT focuses on two agencies that oversee safety enforcement: Pipeline Hazardous Materials and Safety Administration (PHMSA) and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).

“When an oil and gas waste tanker truck overturned right outside my community in Barnesville, Ohio, it spilled 5,000 gallons of ‘brine’ that leaked into our drinking water reservoir which led to it being closed for months,” says Jill Hunkler, director of Ohio Valley Allies. “They call this produced water ‘brine’, which sounds so harmless, but the truth is it’s radioactive, has dangerous chemicals in it, and can be harmful to human health and the environment. Communities deserve the right to know what’s being hauled in these trucks that are continuously running through our towns, both day and night. So, when there’s an accident, like the one in 2016, our local first responders are ready and able to respond appropriately.”

Water samples taken from the Barnesville Reservoir by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency at the time of the accident showed a spike in radium, a naturally occurring radioactive element brought to the surface during fracking operations.