An extended comment period on new rules for conditioning Bakken crude oil has ended.
The rules were presented last week to the state Industrial Commission. But the Commission deferred, wanting to hear what industry and the public thought of the proposal.
"We received roughly a couple of dozen comments," said Department of Mineral Resources spokesperson Alison Ritter. "They were a mix of comments from industry and comments from the general public."
The rules are designed to make Bakken crude safer for transport by rail – meaning crude has to be treated, so some of the natural gas and other petrochemicals would have to be removed before the oil is loaded into tanker cars.
"The next step in the process is for us here to review the comments," said Ritter. "And I know that the Industrial Commission is working on setting a date for the next meeting."
Ritter says the hope is to have the new rule in place by February first.
Industry representatives have objected. They say the real problem with fires and explosions on trains carrying crude oil is the shape of the track and the design of the rail cars, and regulators shouldn't blame the commodity.