Originally Posted By: m6pwr
Anyone who lives near a pipeline or rail that transports dilbit should be concerned.
The crude that comes from the Canadian tar sands is just that: tar mixed in sand. To be transported to a refinery (e.g. through a pipeline like the proposed Keystone XL pipeline), it has to be dissolved into a form of crude known as dilbit (diluted bitumen - ie. diluted tar). The makeup of the chemical soup used as a diluent is claimed to be proprietary (just like fracking chemicals). However, one of the most likely solvents used is benzene, a powerful carcinogen. The stuff is chemically and physically corrosive. In other words, TransCanada wants to transport dilbit in pipelines that were never designed for such a product.
There are already U.S. pipelines in existence that transport Canadian dilbit , but none long enough (that's the XL part - the extra long pipeline) to take the dilbit to refineries in the Gulf that could then export it more cost-effectively to third world countries that don't mind using the fuel that would result: garbage diesel.
The environmental record of these U.S. dilbit-carrying pipelines is pretty sorry. There have been something like 12 spills already from these pipelines. One of the most serious (the so-called Enbridge spill) occurred about four years ago in Michigan, in the Kalamazoo River. It was found that the dilbit sank to the bottom of the river. But that's not the biggest problem. Apparently the diluent evaporates and drifts around the surrounding countryside. The Michigan Dept of Health did a study and found that 60% of the people living in the spill area developed respiratory and nervous system problems consistent with acute benzene poisoning.
So OP (Tig 1), when you hear the sirens going off or see "breaking news" indicating the rails cars have gone off the track, my advice would be to run. JUST RUN.
"Most Likely" is a scientific term?