Alarms raised over coal train traffic
SANDPOINT — Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper and the Sierra Club are hosting a forum Thursday to raise awareness of a plan that could dramatically increase coal train traffic through Bonner County.
The Coal Hard Truth forum starts at 6:30 p.m. at the Little Panida Theater on First Avenue.
Opponents of the plan contend that increased coal train traffic will heighten the odds of a derailment, foul water quality with coal dust and damage air quality with diesel pollution. There is also concern that the added train traffic will slow emergency response because traffic will be halted at-grade railroad crossings to let trains through.
Featured speakers at the forum include Sheriff Daryl Wheeler, Dr. Robert Truckner, small business owner and farmer Walter Kloefkorn and Shannon Williamson, executive director of Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper.
Critics of the proposals by Arch Coal and Peabody Energy estimate as many as 40 additional trains will be coming through the community.
“For us, it’s really about water quality and potential impacts on water quality. A significant amount of coal dust is blown off these trains,” said Williamson.
Williamson anticipates Arch and Peabody will seek federal approval via plans to construct export facilities in Washington state so the coal can be shipped overseas markets such as China. Both Arch and Peabody mine coal in the Powder River Basin of Montana and Wyoming.
Waterkeeper plans to urge federal regulators and coal companies to consider impacts to all communities along the rail line, not just the ones adjacent to the export facilities.
“We’re severely impacted because all the trains can then come through Sandpoint. They want to completely ignore the facts. They just want to imagine that the coal is magically transported,” said Williamson.
Waterkeeper expects the coal companies will seek federal approval sometime this spring.
“When the scope of the environmental impact statement goes out for those export facilities, we definitely need to have our voice heard. Otherwise, it could just come barreling through our town,” said Jayce Bylenga, waterkeeper’s outreach coordinator.
Citing a U.S. Department of Energy report, waterkeeper said there have been 20 major derailments along Powder River Basin rail shipping lines. Derailments are not a matter of it, but when, according to the water quality watchdog group.
“In our opinion, it’s very likely to happen,” said Williamson. “If you have a derailment of 100 cars of uncovered coal going into the lake, you’re essentially poisoning your water supply.”