ProRail takes mitigating measures to combat any incidents as effectively as possible.
During the last Kopgroep, Alderman Chantal Zeegers (D66) of Rotterdam decided on behalf of the Mayor and Aldermen that she accepts ProRail's temporary solutions subject to conditions and that ProRail may continue shunting hazardous substances at the Rotterdam port yards for the time being, with the exception of the railway yard Pernis.
environmental permit
In a letter to the House of Representatives, State Secretary Vivianne Heijnen explains what the Mayor and Aldermen of Rotterdam decided on the continuation of the shunting of rail freight at the Rotterdam port yards.
It had previously become known that not all facilities required by the competent authority are included in the environmental permit on the railway yards used by Rotterdam on the Maasvlakte West and Waalhaven South railway yards.
required date of 1 January 2023 and that the planning at the other railway yards is critical.
The facilities have now been realized and tested at the Waalhaven South, Maasvlakte West, Europoort and Botlek railway yards. However, testing showed that dirt had entered the fire pipes. ProRail still has to remove this dirt with powerful flushes and has been given time by Rotterdam until April 23, 2023. Until now, ProRail is taking mitigating measures to be able to combat any incidents as effectively as possible.
There are delays in the construction of the facilities at the Pernis railway yard. ProRail has therefore decided not to shunt dangerous goods here temporarily. ProRail expects that a test can take place in mid-January 2023 and that shunting with hazardous substances can then be resumed. In the meantime, trains with dangerous goods are handled via other yards. As a result, shippers and carriers may experience temporary disruption. This concerns approximately 70 trains per week.
provisional decision
Rotterdam has agreed to continue the shunting of hazardous substances and at the same time imposed an order subject to periodic penalty payments that will be forfeited if ProRail does not do so by 23 April. can still demonstrate the capacity of the pipes by means of flushing.
An important reason for the positive decision is that although the current facilities have not created the desired situation, they are workable and that this has increased environmental safety on balance. In addition, environmental safety would actually decrease if the transport of hazardous substances on the port railways were halted, because in that case hazardous substances would have to be transported to other areas and there would be a shift from transport via rail to road.
yards
Yards are specific locations in a port where ships moor or dock to load or unload cargo. In the port of Rotterdam there are various yards for specific types of cargo, such as containers, bulk goods, oil products, etc. The port of Rotterdam is one of the largest in the world, there are several terminals for different types of goods and transport.
