American Oil and Gas Reporter - September 2015 - 22

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gas activities. It allows municipalities to
enact ordinances regulating aboveground
oil and gas activity, including fire and
emergency response, traffic, lights or
noise, or imposing notice or reasonable
setback requirements, so long as such
regulation is commercially reasonable
and does not effectively prohibit an oil
and gas operation conducted by a
reasonably prudent operator and is not
otherwise pre-empted by law (AOGR,
June 2015, pg. 30).
"The ordinance's revisions seek to
preserve surface property values, the
character of neighborhoods, and other
quality of life issues in Denton," the
city states. "As such, Subchapter 22 of
the Denton Development Code was
streamlined and reorganized to provide
a clear understanding of the gas well
development requirements inside city
limits. In addition, various revisions and
additions were made to regulations of
Subchapter 35, as permitted by HB 40,
including nuisance and noise mitigation,
truck traffic, lighting, notice
requirements, and setbacks."

22 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

Ordinance details can be found at
www.cityofdenton.com/gaswellinspec
tions. ❒

Washington Releases
Rules For Crude Trains

WASHINGTON-The Federal
Railroad Administration released a final
rule in July it says will prevent
unattended trains carrying crude oil,
ethanol, cargo that is poisonous or toxic
by inhalation, and other highly
flammable contents from moving
inadvertently.
The rule was to go into effect 60 days
after its publication in the Federal
Register. The agency says the revised
regulations reflect lessons learned in
train derailments involving crude
transport, including the 2013 accident
that killed 47 in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec.
There, an unattended freight train
carrying Bakken crude rolled down hill
and derailed in the city. According to the
Canadian government, a major factor in

the accident was the train's engineer
failing to properly secure the train.
Under the FRA's final rule, each
locomotive of an affected train left
unattended must be equipped with locks
to prevent entry. The rule allows such
hazardous materials trains to be left
unattended on a main track or siding
only if justified in a plan adopted by the
railroad, and requires train operators be
briefed on federal requirements and the
train secured.
The rule mandates two qualified
railroad employees ensure that hand
brakes and other safety equipment have
been set for trains hauling specified
cargoes, and also requires additional
verification of the train being secured if
a nonrailroad emergency responder may
have affected the train's operations. It
also adds communication requirements
related to job briefings and security
verification, and requires all
locomotives left unattended outside of a
yard to have locks on all entry doors.
"Requiring that an additional, trained
individual double check that the hand
American Oil and Gas Reporter - September 2015

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