Union Pacific Railroad and The Dow Chemical Company Launch TRANSCAER(R) Training Tour as Part of The Companies' Shared Commitment to Public Safety and Corporate Citizenship OMAHA, Neb., and MIDLAND, Mich., Aug. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Emergency responders across California will be honing their chemical rail transportation safety and security skills by participating in an interactive training program touring the state over the next two weeks. The companies behind the tour, Union Pacific Railroad (UP) and The Dow Chemical Company (Dow), consider emergency preparedness education an essential element of responsible corporate citizenship, which in turn serves as a cornerstone to achieving sustainable business growth. Working with TRANSCAER (Transportation Community Awareness and Emergency Response), the voluntary national outreach group the companies co-founded twenty years ago, Dow and UP will provide emergency preparedness and community awareness training focused on the safe and secure transportation of chemical materials to response organizations across the state. Launching today in the Colton/San Bernardino area, the UP/Dow TRANSCAER Training Tour will travel north through California, making scheduled stops to meet with emergency responders in Bakersfield, Fresno, Stockton and Sacramento before completing the tour in Pittsburg on Sept. 10. "Through TRANSCAER, first responders have the opportunity to learn firsthand from chemical and rail transportation experts about the safe movement of chemicals through their communities," said Lou Wagner, General Director, Chemical Transportation Safety, Union Pacific Railroad. "Emergency responders play a critical role in protecting the public's safety and security, and we will continue to bring them the vital information and training they need to prepare for and respond to a chemical transportation incident." Established in 1986 by a consortium of companies from the chemical and rail industries led by Dow and UP, TRANSCAER is a voluntary national outreach effort that welcomes representatives from the chemical manufacturing, transportation, distributor, and emergency response industries, as well as the government, to assist with educational and training initiatives. Dow and UP created this collaborative education and training resource within the framework of their joint commitments to chemical transportation safety and security, which the companies formalized through the development of a memorandum of cooperation issued earlier this year. Both companies also are active participants in the American Chemistry Council's Responsible Care(R) program, the global chemical industry's environmental, health and safety (EH&S) initiative to drive continuous improvement in performance. It achieves this objective by meeting and going beyond legislative and regulatory compliance, and by adopting cooperative and voluntary initiatives with government and other stakeholders. For Dow, TRANSCAER also is an integral part of the company's long-standing commitment to local protection of human health and the environment, which today serves as a key foundational tenet of Dow's 2015 Sustainability Goals, announced in 2006. "We take very seriously our obligation to responsibly manufacture and move our products -- the chemicals that are the essential building blocks for most of the products people use every day," said Henry Ward, Director of Transportation Safety and Security, The Dow Chemical Company. "Rail is the safest mode by which to move these materials, so we are committed to working with UP and our other rail carriers to support the safe and secure transportation of these products. TRANSCAER Training Tours are an important part of that commitment." More information about the UP/Dow TRANSCAER Training Tour, including schedule and training details, can be found at http://www.dow.com/transcaertours. About TRANSCAER TRANSCAER(R) (Transportation Community Awareness and Emergency Response) is a voluntary national outreach effort that focuses on assisting communities to prepare for and respond to a possible hazardous material transportation incident. TRANSCAER(R) members consist of volunteer representatives from the chemical manufacturing, transportation, distributor, and emergency response industries, as well as the government. These 2007 - 2008 training tours campaigns are part of a long-term commitment by Dow and Union Pacific to provide improved community awareness and preparedness along chemical transportation routes, in coordination with national, regional and state TRANSCAER programs. More information about TRANSCAER can be found at http://www.transcaer.org/. About Union Pacific Union Pacific Corporation owns one of America's leading transportation companies. Its principal operating company, Union Pacific Railroad, links 23 states in the western two-thirds of the country and serves the fastest-growing U.S. population centers. Union Pacific's diversified business mix includes Agricultural Products, Automotive, Chemicals, Energy, Industrial Products and Intermodal. The railroad offers competitive long-haul routes from all major West Coast and Gulf Coast ports to eastern gateways. Union Pacific connects with Canada's rail systems and is the only railroad serving all six major gateways to Mexico, making it North America's premier rail franchise. Union Pacific is an active partner in the American Chemistry Council's Responsible Care Program. About The Dow Chemical Company Dow is a diversified chemical company that harnesses the power of innovation, science and technology to constantly improve what is essential to human progress. The Company offers a broad range of products and services to customers in more than 175 countries, helping them to provide everything from fresh water, food and pharmaceuticals to paints, packaging and personal care products. Built on a commitment to its principles of sustainability, Dow has annual sales of $49 billion and employs 43,000 people worldwide. References to "Dow" or the "Company" mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted. More information about Dow can be found at http://www.dow.com/. For editorial information: Diana Patty The Dow Chemical Company (989) 636-5689 For editorial information: Mark Davis Union Pacific Railroad (402) 544-5459 DATASOURCE: The Dow Chemical Company; Union Pacific Railroad CONTACT: Diana Patty of The Dow Chemical Company, +1-989-636-5689, ; or Mark Davis of Union Pacific Railroad, +1-402-544-5459, Web site: http://www.dow.com/ http://www.transcaer.org/

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