(September 25, 2012) Washington - The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) will co-host an Ethanol Safety Seminar with CN Railway and the Illinois RFA in Elgin, Illinois on October 2, 2012 at the Elgin Community College University Business Center. To accommodate schedules and reach as many participants as possible, the seminar features a morning session from 9:00am to 2:00pm and an evening session from 5:30-10:00pm. Lunch and dinner will be provided. While primarily targeting first responders, hazmat teams, safety managers, and local emergency planning committees, it is also open to the general public.

Safety remains a top priority in the ethanol industry. As ethanol production, use and transportation continue to grow in this country, it becomes more important that those responsible for the safety of their townships and communities are prepared for responding to an incident involving the ethanol product. This program provides in-depth information on proper training techniques that first responders and hazmat personnel need to effectively respond to an ethanol-related emergency.

“As a commitment to TRANSCAER® (Transportation Community Awareness and Emergency Response), CN is happy to partner with the Renewable Fuels Association to conduct a series of Ethanol Safety Seminars for first responders, such as firefighters, local emergency planning officials and police agencies,” said Scott McLeod, Sr. Dangerous Goods Officer for CN Railway.  “The focus is on what emergency measures to take in the event of an incident involving ethanol products and the importance of preplanning.”

The goal of this seminar is for attendees to gain a full ethanol emergency response training experience that they can put to use immediately in the field as well as pass along to other first response teams.  A majority of this training is based on the Complete Training Guide to Ethanol Emergency Response, a training package created by the Ethanol Emergency Response Coalition (EERC) that has been distributed throughout the United States and to several countries worldwide.

“It is important that those responsible for the safety of their community are knowledgeable about ethanol fuels and are prepared for an emergency incident, should one occur,” said Ray Defenbaugh, President of the Illinois Renewable Fuels Association and CEO of Big River Resources.  “Response teams should be familiar with ethanol transportation through their areas and have a pre-plan ready for action. The Ethanol Safety Seminar provides resources that help with that process.”

The Ethanol Safety Seminar focuses on numerous important areas of ethanol safety including an introduction to ethanol and ethanol blended fuels, chemical and physical characteristics of ethanol and hydrocarbon fuels, transportation of ethanol blended fuels, storage and dispensing locations, firefighting foam principles and ethanol, ethanol blended fuel emergencies, and incidents at tank farm and bulk storage locations.  Certificates of Participation will be distributed following the completion of the safety seminar.

The RFA has been co-hosting Ethanol Safety Seminars throughout 2012 with Norfolk Southern, CN Railway, and Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF). Scheduled Ethanol Safety Seminar locations for the remainder of 2012 include: Bessemer, AL on October 29th; and Fort Worth, TX on November 29th.

To register for this seminar, go to www.rfa.traincaster.com.

For more information on ethanol emergency response, visit the EERC website at www.EthanolResponse.com.