Communities To California Railroads: Clean Up Your Act
Posted June 21, 2011 in Curbing Pollution, Environmental Justice, Health and the Environment
Today, NRDC and two of our community partners, East Yards Communities For Environmental Justice and the Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice sent letters to California’s two major rail yard operators regarding illegally disposing hazardous waste thereby increasing the risk of serious health problems such as chronic respiratory disease and cancer in neighboring communities. The 90-day notice letters tell the railroads to clean up their California rail yards or face litigation under the federal Resource Conservation and Restoration Act (RCRA).
As I've written about before, these rail yards, owned by Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Santa Fe, are major sources of diesel particulate emissions in their surrounding neighborhoods. These emissions contain hazardous solid particles that contribute to elevated cancer risk in the areas surrounding the rail yards.
Under RCRA, parties can sue to obtain an injunction halting an imminent and substantial danger to human health or the environment; what we did today was give the required 90 days notice to BNSF and UP that we intend to sue unless they clean up their property and reduce the diesel pollution harming Californians living within breathing distance of these 16 facilities.
I hope that the railroads will come to the table and work this out. But if not, the courts are open.
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Comments
Charles Finley — Jun 22 2011 10:11 AM
You are all a bunch of crackpots.
Fred H. Dill — Jun 23 2011 12:57 PM
the two railroads have a $130 million coming next several years from CA transportation prop and stimilus for Colton railroad crossing fix.. This approved in 08 when rails had finacial trouble. Now railroads making BIG money. I believe you should make effort to shift these funds from the Crossing toward fixing San Bernardino yard's air just 5 miles north. I have details if you are interested. Union Pacific has so much free cash they are buying back their own shares to increase stock value.BNSF now owned by BerkHath which means Warren Buffett. I believe they are vulnerable and should agree to shift crossing funds for diesel locomotive emission cures.
NS Anderson — Jun 23 2011 07:46 PM
This is the most rediculous thing I have heard from enviromentalists in ages. Why don't you bother truckers, or better yet, airlines, who air releasing fumes even closer to your houses or directly over you. If your rich ass doesn't like it then move.
A new locomotive already costs over $3mil. Many are 30-45+ years old, because they work just fine, and it is cheaper to overhaul and upgrade them. Building a road unit to satisfy EPY Tier 6+ or enviromental extremists is not only insanely expensive and time consuming from an engineering, purchasing, and maintenance perspective. Why don't you guys complain to the government about their problems, that's something we all can agree on?!