Editor-in-Chief of Sustainability and Climate Change Madhavi Venkatesan named USA TODAY Woman of the Year for Massachusetts for leading plastic bottle ban efforts

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FURTHERING THE SCIENCE OF SUSTAINABILITY, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, AND CLIMATE CHANGE. THE JOURNAL PROVIDES A FORUM FOR ORIGINAL RESEARCH PAPERS, AS WELL AS A COMPELLING MIX OF FEATURE ARTICLE CONTENT—COMMENTARIES, PERSPECTIVES, AND REVIEWS—THAT SUPPLEMENT THE RESEARCH AND HIGHLIGHT THE SOCIAL, ETHICAL, AND BUSINESS ISSUES FACING THE FIELD.

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CREDIT: MARY ANN LIEBERT INC., PUBLISHERS

Madhavi Venkatesan, PhD, Editor-in-Chief of the peer-reviewed journal Sustainability and Climate Change and founder of Sustainable Practices, has been named USA TODAY Woman of the Year for the state of Massachusetts in recognition of her outstanding efforts to eliminate single-use plastic bottles across Cape Cod and the Islands.

With economics and sustainability at the forefront, Venkatesan established Sustainable Practices in 2016, aiming to address pressing environmental issues through innovative solutions. Since then, she and her nonprofit team have spearheaded a series of initiatives that have significantly reduced plastic waste in the region. In 2019, Sustainable Practices launched a groundbreaking municipal plastic bottle ban campaign, targeting the elimination of non-emergency single-use plastic bottles by town governments and the sale of beverages in single-use plastic containers on municipal property across Barnstable County. By June 2021, all 15 towns on Cape Cod had implemented the policy, marking a significant milestone in the fight against plastic pollution.

Building on this success, in 2020, Venkatesan and her team initiated a commercial single-use plastic water bottle ban, calling for the prohibition of the sale of non-carbonated, non-flavored water in single-use plastic bottles of less than one gallon in size within town jurisdictions. By 2023, nine towns, including Brewster, Chatham, Eastham, Falmouth, Harwich, Orleans, Provincetown, Wellfleet, and Yarmouth, had implemented commercial bans, further reducing plastic waste and promoting sustainability in the region.

In recognition of Sustainable Practices' impactful work, Gov. Maura Healey presented the organization with a citation in January, acknowledging their dedication to environmental stewardship and the success of their bottle ban efforts. Following the organization's lead, Gov. Healey announced in September that she would sign an executive order banning the purchase of single-use plastic bottles by state agencies, aligning with Sustainable Practices' mission to create a cleaner, greener future for Massachusetts.

Dr. Venkatesan's leadership and commitment to sustainability have not only transformed communities across Cape Cod and the Islands but have also inspired change at the state level. Her tireless advocacy and innovative solutions serve as a beacon of hope in the global fight against plastic pollution.

About the Journal
Sustainability and Climate Change is a peer-reviewed publication dedicated to furthering the science of sustainability, sustainable development, and climate change. The Journal provides a forum for original research papers, as well as a compelling mix of feature article content—commentaries, perspectives, and reviews—that supplement the research and highlight the social, ethical, and business issues facing the field. The Journal is led by Editor-in-Chief Madhavi Venkatesan, PhD, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, and an esteemed international editorial board. Complete tables of contents and a sample issue are available on the Sustainability and Climate Change website.

About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. is a global media company dedicated to creating, curating, and delivering impactful peer-reviewed research and authoritative content services to advance the fields of biotechnology and the life sciences, specialized clinical medicine, and public health and policy. For complete information, please visit the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. website.

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JOURNAL

Sustainability and Climate Change

METHOD OF RESEARCH

News article

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

 

Role of African women and young people in agricultural service provision investigated in new CABI-led study

The role of African women and young people engaged in agricultural service provision has been investigated in a new CABI-led study published in the CABI Agriculture and Bioscience journal.

Peer-Reviewed Publication

CABI

 

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STUDY SHOWS THAT THE ENGAGEMENT OF AFRICAN WOMEN AND YOUNG PEOPLE IN AGRICULTURAL SERVICE PROVISION IS ‘NOT A PANACEA TO THE CHALLENGES THEY FACE’ SUCH AS LIMITED DECISION-MAKING IN PRODUCTION AND INCOME (CREDIT: CABI).

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CREDIT: CABI

The role of African women and young people engaged in agricultural service provision has been investigated in a new CABI-led study published in the CABI Agriculture and Bioscience journal.

By combining a literature review with ongoing action research in Kenya, the scientists provide insights into the main characteristics, benefits, and shortfalls of business models for engaging women and young people in agricultural service provision in Africa.

‘Not a panacea to the challenges faced’

The findings show that the engagement of African women and young people in agricultural service provision is ‘not a panacea to the challenges they face’ such as limited decision-making in production and income.

However, the researchers argue that various business models have been successful in contributing to economic empowerment, to increasing entrepreneurial activities and to upskilling of women and young people engaged as service providers.

Business models that are successful, the researchers say, are place-based and people-focused, market-driven and focused on value chains.

Need for multi-sectoral inter-institutional collaboration

Challenges however abound due to various factors. Therefore, for sustainability there is need for multi-sectoral inter-institutional collaboration that pulls in funding and which makes a case for private sector buy-in, they stress.

Women play a significant and increasing role in agriculture in Africa – making up 55% of the workforce. Meanwhile, almost 60% of Africa’s population in 2019 was under the age of 25, making Africa the world’s youngest continent.

Dr Mariam Kadzamira, lead author and Senior Researcher, Agribusiness at CABI, said, “Africa’s women and youth hold the key to the continent’s very survival and the burden to sustain wider global development.

“But they remain on the periphery of decision-making processes, have limited control over productive resources and are predominantly engaged in low paying and/or non-remunerated roles within the sector.

“For sustained and effective engagement of women and young people in agricultural service provision, there is need for multi-sectoral inter-institutional collaboration. This requires long term dedicated funding from governments and development partners.

“Dedicated funding should include components for continuous capacity building as well as provision of low-cost credit for the service providers.”

Multiple skills for potential service providers

She adds that any capacity building programme should budget to provide potential service providers with multiple skills, for them to respond effectively to the evolving needs of their communities, value chains or industry, thus enabling them to earn a sufficient level of income over a cropping season.

Co-author,  Dr Monica Kansiime, CABI’s Deputy Director of Development and Outreach for Africa, said, “There is also need for buy-in from industry and the private sector to deliberately incorporate women and young people in their business plans and marketing networks.

“This requires a clear articulation of how the market-driven approach would contribute to the bottom line of the agribusiness while concurrently tapping into a locally available and underutilized human resource.”

The researchers highlight that future research should focus on increasing the evidence base to understand if successes with inclusion of women and young people in agricultural service provision has an influence on agricultural policy.

They also stress a need to rigorously assess the extent to which successful agricultural service business models are engendered – given the prevailing gender gap in the agricultural sector and the fact that service provision in agriculture is still predominantly delivered by men.

Socio-cultural barriers, institutional constraints, and financial bottlenecks

Dr Kadzamira added, “Such research should aim to contribute to the identification of comprehensive strategies for training and engagement of women, young or otherwise, as agricultural service providers and for increasing women’s access to agricultural services once they are made available.

“This research should also aim to understand how promoters can work to overcome the socio-cultural barriers, institutional constraints and financial bottlenecks that make it harder for women to enter or to stay in agriculture service provision in Africa.”

The researchers conclude by suggesting there is need for robust transdisciplinary research to ground truth the various insights emerging from the action research reported in this study as well as similar numerous efforts available as grey literature.

Dr Kansiime added, “Focus should be on quantifying actual renumeration to service providers, and clientele’s (farmers) willingness-to-pay for services rendered by local women and youth versus their willingness-to-pay for services rendered by other service providers.

“There is also a need to measure and quantify impacts at farmer level of the engagement of women and young people as agricultural service providers.”

Additional information

Main image: Study shows that the engagement of African women and young people in agricultural service provision is ‘not a panacea to the challenges they face’ such as limited decision-making in production and income (Credit: CABI).

Full paper reference

Kadzamira, M., Chege, F., Suntharalingam, C., Mary Bundi, M., Likoko, L., Magero, D., Romney, D., Kansiime, M., and Mulema, J., ‘African women and young people as agriculture service providers – business models, benefits, gaps and opportunities,’ CABI Agriculture & Bioscience, 4 March 2024, DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1186/s43170-024-00229-y

The paper can be read full open access here.

 

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JOURNAL

CABI Agriculture and Bioscience

DOI

10.1186/s43170-024-00229-y 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Experimental study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

African women and young people as agriculture service providers – business models, benefits, gaps and opportunities

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

4-Mar-2024

BOYCOTT

Air Canada Becomes 2nd North American Airline To Announce A Return To Israel

BYJONATHAN E. HENDRY

PUBLISHED 1 DAY AGO

Photo: Air Canada

The Star Alliance carrier will resume flights from Toronto next month, followed by Montreal in May.

SUMMARY

Air Canada joins United Airlines in resuming flights to Tel Aviv, using the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner for the route.

The carrier's flight (AC 80) will leave Toronto for Tel Aviv on April 8th, with the first return flight on April 10th.

Air Canada temporarily canceled flights last October due to hostilities but will now resume flights from Toronto next month, with Montreal to follow in May.

Canadian flag carrier Air Canada is the latest airline to resume flights to Tel Aviv. The carrier joins fellow Star Alliance Member United Airlines in resuming flights to the city this spring after suspending them last October.
Dreaming of a 787 Service

Air Canada has confirmed its return to Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion International Airport (TLV) beginning next month. Simple Flying's analysis of flight schedule data provided to Cirium shows the first flight since the suspension departing on April 8th with one of the carrier's Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners.

The link is set to leave Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) at 16:44 on Monday, April 8th from Terminal 1. The flight (AC 80) is scheduled to take ten hours and 30 minutes to arrive, landing at Tel Aviv's Terminal 3 at 09:55 the following morning.

RELATED
United Airlines To Become The First US Carrier To Resume Tel Aviv FlightsThe service was originally suspended in October 2023.


The return flight does not leave Tel Aviv until Wednesday, April 10th. Departing just before noon at 11:55 local time, the flight (AC 81) is blocked to take eleven and a half hours to reach Toronto where it lands at 16:55 the same day. Speaking to Open Jaw, Air Canada's Peter Fitzpatrick confirmed the airline is targeting April for its return to the airport:


"We have always said we intend to resume service to TLV, and we are finalizing the logistics at this point for a potential resumption in April,"

The carrier is deploying its Dreamliners on the route. The widebody jets are configured to seat 21 passengers in business class, 21 in premium economy, and 21 in standard economy.

Back at Ben Gurion

United Airlines was the first North American carrier to resume flights to the airport. The carrier's first two flights were operated via Munich for technical contingencies and have arrived safely, signaling the resumption of nonstop flights between Tel Aviv and Newark (EWR), which serves the New York City region.

RELATED
Why British Airways Is Relaunching Tel Aviv Flights With A Stop In Cyprus

The UK flag carrier has also opted to switch the aircraft used on this route.

Air Canada temporarily canceled flights between Canada and Tel Aviv on October 8th, 2023, citing the hostilities in Israel. Airline officials suggested at the time that flights would be resumed when deemed appropriate:

“We are monitoring this dynamic situation closely and we will adjust these plans as required,” airline officials said at the time.

“We remain in contact with the Canadian government. Air Canada will resume operations to Tel Aviv as soon as the situation stabilizes.”

Photo: WorldStock | Shutterstock

Other carriers to resume flights to Tel Aviv this year included eight European carriers, which resumed services in January. Up next, Air Canada will reinstate flights from Montreal (YUL) to Tel Aviv on May 1st, also with its Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners.

More Disruption: Lufthansa Staff Set To Strike Again On Thursday & Friday

BY RYTIS BERESNEVIČIUS

Following previous labor action, the ver.di union called for tougher measures since its demands were not met by Lufthansa.



Lufthansa
IATA/ICAO Code:LH/DLH
Airline Type:Full Service Carrier
Hub(s):Frankfurt Airport, Munich Airport
Year Founded:1953
Alliance:Star Alliance
Airline Group:Lufthansa Group
CEO:Carsten Spohr
Country:Germany

SUMMARY

Ground handling employees at Lufthansa are set to strike on March 7 and 8 due to failed negotiations over salary demands.

Ver.di called for early negotiations with Lufthansa before the next round of discussions but was met with no improvement in offers.

Prior strikes by ver.di have targeted specific sectors within Lufthansa, aiming to increase pressure on the airline.

Following unsuccessful negotiations, the United Services Union (Vereinte Dienstleistungsgewerkschaft, ver.di) has called for Lufthansa’s ground-handling employees to strike for two days, ahead of the next round of negotiations between the union and the airline.

Failing to match demands

In its statement, ver.di urged Lufthansa’s ground-handling employees to strike, which would follow industrial action by employees at Lufthansa Cargo and Lufthansa Technik. The strikes are scheduled for March 7 and March 8, with the union referring to them as "warning strikes."

Photo: Nate Hovee | Shutterstock

Ver.di explained that during the previous round of negotiations on February 21 and 22, Lufthansa Group only improved its offer in two areas, including an increase in the salary offer of 0.5%. The union’s primary demand has been a salary increase of at least 12.5%. As a result, the two sides failed to reach an agreement, and the next round of negotiations are scheduled for March 13 and March 14, around a week after ver.di’s planned labor action.

In a statement to Simple Flying, a Lufthansa Group spokesperson said that this was the latest escalation by the union in just a few days, with ver.di's four strikes now amounting to a total of 145 hours, adding that this was "significantly longer than the negotiation period."


"There have only been two real negotiation dates and the further date offered for today, Monday, has obviously been rejected with the current strike call. Verdi is affecting over 200,000 passengers with this strike – Lufthansa is working on a special flight plan."

CN, USW Reach New Tentative Collective Agreement

Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor

• • March 04, 2024
   
  • Class I

(CN Photograph)

CN on March 1 reported reaching a new tentative three-year collective agreement with United Steelworkers (USW) Local 2004, which represents approximately 2,500 track and bridge workers, who are primarily responsible for the Class I’s track maintenance across Canada.

The deal comes after months of negotiations, kicking off in October 2023, with the current collective agreement having expired Dec. 31, 2023, according to the union.

The new agreement was unanimously endorsed by USW Local 2004’s nine-member bargaining committee, the union reported. Ratification meetings will take place this month via regional in-person and online townhall meetings.

No details will be released publicly until the new agreement is ratified, according to CN. Results of the ratification vote are expected by the end of March or early April, the union said.

“We are proud of this new deal that we were able to reach after many long weeks,” commented USW Local 2004 President Cole Kramer. “Our members do important work in ensuring the continuing viability of our national railways and I am pleased that we were able to reach an agreement that fairly compensates them for their efforts.”

USW is said to represent 225,000 members “in nearly every economic sector across Canada and is the largest private-sector union in North America, with 850,000 members in Canada, the United States and the Caribbean.”

Separately, CN and Canadian Pacific Kansas City on Feb. 16 filed separate Notices of Dispute in their negotiations with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference.

(USW Photograph)

UPDATE: NTSB reviews data, image recorders from 3-train collision, derailment

LehighValleyNews.com | By Ryan Gaylor
Published March 3, 2024 
Bethlehem News

A Norfolk Southern worker disassembles tracks Sunday morning near a derailment in Lower Saucon Twp.

LOWER SAUCON TWP., Pa. — Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board continued work Sunday to determine why three freight trains collided and derailed near Steel City on Saturday morning.

Shortly after 7 a.m. Saturday, an eastbound freight train operated by Norfolk Southern hit another train stopped on the same tracks, according to the NTSB.

“The area where the locomotives were in the water will remain contained with booms until any residual sheen has been removed."
Norfolk Southern spokesperson

The collision pushed several railcars onto neighboring tracks and into the path of an oncoming westbound train.

NTSB investigators arrived in Lower Saucon on Saturday afternoon, according to agency spokeswoman Sarah Sulick. In addition to mechanically examining the derailed cars, officials retrieved video from inward- and outward-facing cameras on each train, operations and control data from recorders in each locomotive, and logs stored by trackside signals.

The team of investigators is made up of “experts in train operations, signals and train control, and human performance,” she wrote in a statement.

By Sunday morning, the NTSB had released control of the site to Norfolk Southern, freeing crews to pull two locomotives from the river bank and partially in the Lehigh River.

Cleanup crews with a Norfolk Southern subcontractor, Lewis Environmental, were visible working near yellow floating booms in the water to contain spilled diesel fuel.

Courtesy
/
Nancy Run Fire CompanyTrain engines on the bank of the Lehigh River, partially submerged, after a derailment Saturday, March 2, 2024, off Riverside Drive in Lower Saucon Township.

Ryan Gaylor
/
LehighValleyNews.ComTwo divots are visible along the Lehigh River Sunday morning where a pair of locomotives came to rest after derailing.

“The area where the locomotives were in the water will remain contained with booms until any residual sheen has been removed,” a Norfolk Southern spokesperson wrote in an email.

Plastic pellets also spilled into the river, Lower Saucon Police Chief Thomas Barndt said Saturday, but there was no risk of hazardous material being released by the derailment.

No injuries were reported as a result of the collision.

Norfolk Southern crews were working to remove the tracks affected by the derailment, stacking them along the side of the right-of-way.

NTSB investigators will remain in the Lehigh Valley for several more days, Sulick said, chiefly to interview Norfolk Southern crew members involved in the crash.

Cleanup to take days, cause a year or two

Cleanup is likely to take several days, officials said yesterday.

The NTSB will release a preliminary report on the accident in about three weeks, to include "factual information gathered during the initial phase of the investigation," said Sulick. A final report laying out exactly what caused the accident will take one to two years.

“We were very, very, very fortunate.”
Lower Saucon Township Council President Priscilla deLeon

While each investigation is different, NTSB personnel are typically on site for about a week.

Riverside Drive will remain closed east of Steel City while the wreckage is cleared, Lower Saucon Township Council President Priscilla deLeon said.

That gives residents only one way in and out of town.

DeLeon said she has long worried that a train carrying hazardous materials would crash near Steel City.

“We were very, very, very fortunate,” she said, that none of the railcars thrown from their tracks Saturday were carrying dangerous cargo.

Staff writer Tom Shortell contributed to this report.

NTSB Investigating NS Collision, Derailment in Pennsylvania (UPDATED)

Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive EditorMarch 02, 2024

“Rescue Engine 1413 is currently on scene with a train derailment in the area of Riverside Dr. in Lower Saucon. It is reported there are no injuries, with train cars into the river. Lower Saucon Fire Rescue and Northampton County Emergency Management Services are working with multiple local and state agencies on this incident,” the Nancy Run Fire Company of Bethlehem, Pa., reported early March 2 on Facebook. (Photograph Courtesy of Nancy Run Fire Company, via Facebook)

Three Norfolk Southern (NS) trains were involved in a derailment March 2 just east of Steel City, Pa., along the Lehigh River. There were no reported injuries to crews. An eastbound train collided with a stopped train on the same track, and the wreckage that spilled onto an adjacent track was struck by a westbound train, according to preliminary information from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), media outlets said. It was not immediately known how many cars derailed. The Lower Saucon Township Police Department reported there were no evacuations or hazardous material threat to the community.

Emergency personnel were dispatched at 7:15 a.m., according to the Department. Railcars were on the riverbank and at least one locomotive was partially in the water. (See photos below.)

Diesel fuel spilled into the river and containment booms were deployed, the Department reported. “Norfolk Southern called it a small diesel fuel leak ‘common when locomotives are involved’ that was contained with the booms and would be ‘vacuumed out,’” according to the Associated Press.

Polypropylene plastic pellets also spilled from one derailed car, and an NS spokesperson told CBS News Philadelphia that the pellets landed “predominantly onto the ground.”  

NS is on site and reported via social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that it is assessing the scene with first responders. “We appreciate the quick, professional response by local emergency agencies,” the Class I railroad said. “Our crews and contractors will remain on-scene over the coming days to cleanup, and we appreciate the public’s patience while they work as quickly, thoroughly and as safely as possible. We are always working to advance safety. We will investigate this incident to understand how it happened and prevent others like it.”

“We are very pleased that this derailment was so quickly and expertly handled. I want to thank all of the first responders for that,” said Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure, according to LehighValleyNews.com.

The Federal Railroad Administration said via social media that its safety personnel was working with emergency responders and local authorities on the scene.

Among the other responding agencies: The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Pennsylvania Fish Commission, Northampton County Emergency Management, Lower Saucon Fire and Rescue, Bethlehem Township Volunteer Company, Freemansburg Fire Company, Dewey Fire and EMS, and Lehigh County Special Ops Team.

NTSB Investigation

The NTSB will release a preliminary report in three weeks, CBS News Philadelphia reported March 3.

It has started “reviewing data from the trains’ event recorders and other evidence and has collected some information to send to Washington, D.C., to be analyzed,” the media outlet said. The investigators also examined the derailed cars and other train equipment, according to the NTSB.

“Investigators are expected to work at the site for several more days, speaking with crew members and gathering other information to determine what caused the crash. Although they are still collecting evidence, NTSB officials said they have released the site so Norfolk Southern can begin to move the cars and repair the tracks.”

The final NTSB report, detailing the probable cause of the collision and derailment, is expected in one-to-two years, according to the NTSB, CBS News Philadelphia reported. 

(Photograph Courtesy of Nancy Run Fire Company, via Facebook)

(Photograph Courtesy of Nancy Run Fire Company, via Facebook)

(Photograph Courtesy of Nancy Run Fire Company, via Facebook)

Tags: Breaking News, Federal Railroad Administration, Lower Saucon Township Police Department, National Transportation Safety Board, Norfolk Southern

Oberman calls out UP, BNSF for cutting jobs when they should focus on growth

March 5, 2024

Home - SMART Union (smart-union.org)

Surface Transportation Board Chairman Martin Oberman has seen some rail carriers cut jobs and neglect their infrastructure in pursuit of short-term profit, and he says there’s nothing to like about it.

Oberman spoke last week before the Southeast Association of Rail Shippers’ conference, and the “cult of the operating ratio” (OR) could be rising again with BNSF and Union Pacific cutting workers and a hedge fund looking to seize Norfolk Southern.

“These low OR — which could only be achieved rapidly — as the activists demanded — by cutting payroll — have meant lots of free cash which the Class Is have not been shy about paying out in stock buybacks, dividends, and in BNSF’s case, returns to its owner,” Oberman said. “The total in the last decade or so is over $250 billion — money which was not invested in retaining workers or building new infrastructure to increase a railroad’s reach and serve more customers.”

Billionaire Warren Buffett said as much in his recent letter to shareholders, expressing disappointment in BNSF’s latest returns. Union Pacific ousted a CEO in 2023 and the new one is doubling down on squeezing workers in the name of shareholder return.

SMART-TD members and rail workers have been coping with the consequences through job cuts, irresponsibly long trains and inhumane work schedules. For our members, “PSR” stands for “punishing and sadistic railroading.”

Starting in about 2014, more than 45,000 rail workers lost their jobs because of the quest for increased efficiency.

“Railroads are a regulated monopoly. They have a common carrier obligation to the public interest and to the nation’s economy,” Oberman said. “Unlike other businesses, railroad management and owners are not just free to manipulate the business by draining the company’s resources for short-term gain.”

Too often, the pro-free market crowd, overseeing spreadsheets from the comfort of their railroad offices, think that “free market” means “we can run our business however we want and do to workers and the communities we affect whatever we want. We’re here to make money, and they should be happy about it. They’re lucky we’re here.”

That mentality’s brought longer trains, fewer inspections and less emphasis on safety, as much as industry executives and mouthpieces like the Association of American Railroads and Railway Age claim the railroads are working in everyone’s best interests. PSR is only good for everyone who owns stock.

The industry’s shareholders cruised through the initial wave of PSR with fatter wallets and bigger dividends, Oberman noted in his speech. Contrast that with the thousands of workers who were sent home for the last time as service to their former customers suffered.

Investor neglect drew attention of federal regulators, including Oberman’s STB, after a post-COVID national supply chain meltdown. The STB held hearings on carrier performance in 2022 and has kept a close eye on carrier personnel levels since.

Recent events indicate carrier leadership is being guided back to its shortsighted ways. Investors demand quick profits at the exclusion of all else. Hundreds of jobs have been cut from BNSF and Union Pacific over the past weeks and months.

So when leaders such as Oberman and Federal Railroad Administrator Amit Bose decide to oversee the industry through a more skeptical lens, along with the workers and the members of the media, those folks in the comfortable offices get less comfortable.

Oberman also expressed his doubts about activist investor group Ancora’s plan to replace Norfolk Southern’s leadership with a who’s who of exploitative executives.

“Several weeks ago, Ancora wrote me a letter. The essence of their message was that they had taken a $1 billion dollar stake in NS in order for it — quote — ‘to become a safer railroad,’ ” Oberman said. “Really? What hedge fund raises $1 billion to promote safety anywhere? The measure of Ancora’s disingenuous pitch to improve safety is that its slide deck completely omits reference to FRA data which shows that, in the last year, NS has been an industry leader in reducing mainline rail accidents and derailments.”

SMART-TD members — the people who do the work — have lived through PSR. Oberman has gone through PSR, as has Bose. It was a failure for workers, shippers and catastrophic for the national supply chain. It’s not wanted by anyone or good for anyone except for those who would reap the most by doing the least.

The watchdogs of the industry — Oberman, Bose and SMART-TD — all recognize this. We do not want to go through it again.

UP and BNSF executives — you’ll need to get to work, because PSR doesn’t.

Read Oberman’s speech

With rail safety bill’s passage, two-person crews could be required for Virginia freight trains

BY: NATHANIEL CLINE - MARCH 4, 2024 

     

 CSX’s Acca Yard in Richmond is a major freight rail depot. (AiRVA Photography)

As the federal government considers requiring two crewmembers on all trains, similar legislation to increase rail safety statewide passed both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly. 

Last year‘s Norfolk Southern Railway Company train derailment in Ohio – which caused some cars to catch fire and spill dangerous materials, with some infiltrating local waterways – sparked the state legislation and a greater focus on railway safety standards.

Del. Shelly Simonds, D-Newport News, and Sen. Jennifer Carroll Foy, D-Prince William, carried the measure successfully, which is now headed to the governor for his signature. With the governor’s signature, Virginia would join states such as Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, New York, and Ohio to reform rail safety efforts. 

Under the legislation, no railroad company will be able to operate a train, locomotive or light engine by moving freight without at least two qualified individuals aboard. The bill carries a civil penalty of up to $2,000 for the first violation and $5,000 for three or more. 

The legislation was amended, cutting regulations on the train length. The legislation would not apply to using a train, locomotive, or light engine for moving locomotives or for utility services. 

Simonds said residents and commuters in her district have expressed concerns about long trains causing delays at road crossings and are “fed up with these delays.” She said Hampton Roads has over 500 railroad crossings. 

“The bottom line is that every train must have a two-person crew so that someone can respond to emergencies and decouple the train if first responders need to get through a crossing,” said Simonds. “I don’t think we realize how dangerous it is for roads to be blocked by a train if there is a fire or a person needs to get to a hospital.”

If the governor signs the bills, Simonds said the legislation will ensure a crewmember will always be on board a train who can help our first responders if there’s an accident. She noted that railroads are also critical to commerce and Virginia’s supply chain, so they must operate as safely as possible. 

Last year, Simonds carried the same bill, but it failed 4-3 in a House Commerce and Energy subcommittee, as the Federal Railway Administration also reviewed regulations on freight crew sizes. The federal agency’s effort was an attempt “to avoid a patchwork of state laws,” said Rob Bohannon, representing the Virginia Railway Association.

The Virginia subcommittee also heard testimony that passing the bill would set a “slippery slope” in regulating businesses and create a challenge for rail operators struggling to find workers.

Tim Bentley, who spoke on behalf of Norfolk Southern during a January Senate Commerce and Labor committee hearing, said that passing the legislation in the commonwealth could create a potential difference between the state law and federal regulations. 

“We have always believed that crew size should be negotiated in collective bargaining, but if it’s not in collective bargaining, we believe there needs to be a systemwide, nationwide standard of federal regulations,” Bentley said, similar to other federal rail regulations. 

Rachel Jones, deputy secretary of transportation, had also previously urged lawmakers at the same committee meeting to consider waiting until the federal government’s ruling.

However, the federal government has been working on the rule for a long time, according to Carroll Foy.

“There’s no reason to believe that the federal government will actually take action on the federal administration proposal,” Carroll Foy said.

She added the case in Ohio cost millions and threatened the lives of many people, so “we need to make sure that we have engineers and conductors ready to go on these trains to keep everyone safe.”

SMART Union, representing railroad workers nationwide, advocated for the legislation and two-person crew rule over the past two sessions.

“This bill is not just for the rail workers; it’s for the safety for all Virginians to have an employee able to assist in case of emergency and, most importantly, be able to open up the crossing on the mega-long trains so the emergency responders and the public can pass through,” said 

SMART State Legislative Director Ronnie Hobbs in a statement. “A two-person crew is especially important in case of a derailment, such as occurred in East Palestine, because it is the conductor who has the paperwork about any hazardous materials on board and who coordinates with emergency services.”

The rail administration is proposing a minimum requirement of two crewmembers for all railroad operations, with exceptions for operations that do not pose significant safety risks to railroad employees, the public, or the environment. The federal government is expected to rule on the proposal this month. Simonds and Carroll Foy’s bill now heads to Gov. Glenn Youngkin for review.