Officials wary of proposed train's impact

SANDPOINT — The Tongue River Railroad hasn’t been built yet, but city officials are already wary of the impact it could have on Sandpoint.

A new rail line proposed to ship coal from Montana to the West Coast, the Tongue River Railroad is the latest coal shipment proposal the city is acting upon, this time with a request for environmental impact studies and assistance from the railroad to cover the cost of safety infrastructure.  

“This is a really unique opportunity for our community to have our voice and our concerns heard,” said Councilwoman Shannon Williamson.

Council members voted last Wednesday to formally send their requests in a letter to the Surface Transportation Board, the federal body covering the proposed rail line. According to Williamson, the STB is agreeable to factoring concerns of communities along the rail line in its decision-making.

“The only problem so far is that they haven’t reached out to any rail-side communities,” Williamson said.

With an environmental review process already under way, Williamson said Sandpoint has a prime opportunity to be included in the process. The council asked the federal board reach to contact Mayor Carrie Logan, ensuring Sandpoint is factored into the process.

According to Williamson, the Tongue River Railroad, which would transport coal from the proposed Otter Creek Mine in southeast Montana, would add 10 trains per day through Sandpoint. The additive effect when combined with unrelated train traffic increases in Sandpoint would take its toll on the community, Williamson said.

Inclusion in an Environmental Impact Statement is only one branch of the measure. Williamson said there’s also an opportunity to secure additional financial support in the event the railroad is constructed. According to Williamson, the STB can mandate that the railroad carry the bulk of infrastructure costs, including overpasses and underpasses to mitigate community impacts. In some cases, the board has put as much as 75 percent of the burden on the railroads.

The city has issued several resolutions in the past stating concerns over export terminals proposed along the Washington and Oregon coastlines. As in those cases, city officials once again site potential health impacts from coal dust, transportation delays, impacts to emergency response times and potential environmental impacts from derailment among their concerns.