Freight rail industry honors leaders in hazardous material safety

The Association of American Railroads (AAR) announced the 2020 recipient of the Holden-Proefrock Award and the 2019 Non-Accident Release (NAR) Grand Slam Awards. The awards are given annually to individuals, shippers and railroads operating in hazardous material fields.

Ron Gould, a Senior Hazardous Materials Response Manager, is the 2020 Holden-Proefrock Award recipient. With 45 years of rail experience, Gould has supported the industry’s response to railroad emergencies as a contractor in nearly every territory of North America. He has assisted in the training of countless first responders, railroad employees and contractors in areas from emergency response to railroad operations. A recognized industry leader and mentor, Gould has been called on to coordinate response operations for countless incidents over the years. During his time in hazardous material response, he has played a key role in the response and clean-up of derailments up and down the east coast, including the 2001 Howard Street derailment in Baltimore, and the 2015 derailment in Mt. Carbon.

The Holden-Proefrock Award is named in honor of Roy Holden, a former AAR employee and an innovator in tank car design and safety, and Art Proefrock, a former Hulcher Emergency Services employee who pioneered hazardous materials transportation emergency response.

The NAR Grand Slam Award is presented annually to companies that are exemplary shippers of hazardous materials. An award winner must have been recognized by at least four Class I railroads and have had zero non-accident releases involving their shipments the previous calendar year. A hazardous materials non-accident release is an unintentional release of a hazardous material while in transportation, but not involving an accident.

The 2019 NAR Grand Slam Award was presented to 14 companies. They are ADM, The Andersons Inc., Cenovus Energy Marketing Services Ltd., the Chemours Company, Cornerstone Chemical Co., Elbow River Marketing Ltd., ERCO WORLDWIDE, ExxonMobil, HJ BAKER SULPHUR LLC, Husky Energy Inc, Kemira, Keyera Energy Inc., Methanex Methanol Company LLC, and NGL Supply Co Ltd.