The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Railway will co-host a free Ethanol Safety Seminar on Oct. 23 and 24 at the Tacoma Fire Department Training Center in Tacoma, Wash. Sessions will run from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Registration is limited to the first 60 people per session. Lunch will be provided. Certificates of attendance will be awarded to attendees at the completion of the course.

This course was developed to give first responders, hazmat teams, and safety personnel an in-depth look at proper training techniques needed when responding to an ethanol-related emergency.

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.

"These training opportunities allow community responders to become more knowledgeable and better prepared to respond safely and effectively to incidents involving ethanol," said Patrick Brady, assistant director of hazardous materials at BNSF Railway.

"We feel it is important to bring in leaders in the hazmat emergency response field to share the best practices for responding to ethanol incidents with responders in communities that we serve."

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 and transfer of ethanol-blended fuels, storage and dispensing locations, firefighting foam principles and ethanol-blended fuel, health and safety considerations for ethanol-blended fuel emergencies and tank farm and bulk storage fire incidents.

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

The RFA has been co-hosting Ethanol Safety Seminars throughout 2013. There are two remaining Ethanol Safety Seminars scheduled for the year. They will take place on Oct. 29 in Albuquerque, N.M., and on Nov. 14 in Pipestone, Minn.

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