The president of the North Dakota Petroleum Marketers Association said he’s happy Gov. Doug Burgum signed a waiver of hours of service for those who haul propane, gasoline and diesel fuel.
Mike Rud said the wet fall and late harvest is causing increased demands for propane, which is used to help crops dry out. Rud said that demand is regional, as a number of states issued their own waivers.
"There's probably a 7-state area in the Midwest," Rud said. "Everyone's trying to get the corn and the beans off the fields at the same time, since it was such a wet fall.
"What we were trying to do is keep up with propane demand," Rud said.
Rud said a lot of crops remain in the fields across North Dakota, awaiting harvest – and that could also lead to more demands for diesel.
"There's only so many drivers and so many transports," Rud said. "You start running into situations where you don't have the drivers or the transports. And all of a sudden, the gas isn't getting delivered in a timely fashion, and the diesel isn't getting delivered in a timely fashion."
The waiver is in effect for 30 days.