BY THE 1850s, IT HAD BECOME INCREASINGLY DIFFICULT FOR SMALL-SCALE MINERS to find and profitably extract gold from California’s gold country. That’s when big-time operators moved in with hydraulic technology. Sediment, washed away by their high-pressure hoses, dammed or clogged riverbeds and lakes. Rivers’ courses changed. Agriculture was threatened in the Central Valley. Conflicts over […]
Crude by rail: An opportunity to lead
THE VALERO REFINERY WANTS TO BRING IN A NEW FORM OF CRUDE OIL to process in their refinery here in Benicia. Union Pacific Railroad will be the transporter. There is a host of safety concerns, not the least of which is the volatility of this newer crude. Should a mishap in transportation cause any one […]
Valero: Reinforced tanker cars would be used to bring crude to Benicia
■ Oil would come from unspecified North American sources, public told If Valero Benicia Refinery gets permission to transport some of its crude by rail, the oil would come from North American sources and would arrive in tanker cars that are stronger than the ones that comply with current federal regulations, refinery officials said Monday. […]