[Vision2020] Spokane Army Corps Hearing on the Coal Trains

[Nicholas Gier]

Greetings:

This is my third radio commentary on the proposed coal ports to ship
the dirtiest fossil fuel to Asia.  The hearing on Tuesday was one of
the most exciting examples of citizen democracy that I've ever
witnessed.

I wrote the column below for the Bellingham Hearld, where I live 6
months of the year, 70 feet above the BNSF tracks on Bellingham Bay.

Read the full 3,000-word version that is attached.

We will win this one just as we stopped the Exxon-Mobil loads on Highway 12,

Nick

The Army Corps Hearing on the Coal Trains in Spokane

I was on the east side when the Bellingham and Mount Vernon coal train
hearings were held, so I made sure that I attended the hearing in
Spokane hearing on December 4.  In addition to the Army Corps of
Engineers, representatives from Washington DEQ and Whatcom County
Council were on the panel.

I drew card 86, but unfortunately the 3-hour period ended after 85
speakers. Place holders had been hired by the Northwest Alliance for
Jobs and Exports, just as SSA Marine had done for the Ferndale
hearing. As a result, union members and industry spokesmen dominated
the first hour of the hearing. By the end, however, opponents
outnumbered proponents 53 to 32. Ordinary citizens dominated the
discussion, and the vote from them was 26 to 6 against more coal
exports.

Most union members (3 from Bellingham) testified for the coal ports,
but 4 of 23 spoke out against, including the first female engineer on
the BNSF.  Three city council members from Spokane and Sandpoint—plus
seven conservation organization spokesmen—testified about adverse
effects to their cities, waterways, and forests.  Two city planners,
four nurses and doctors, and two Montana ranchers also spoke out
against the coal ports.  A busload of Montanans had come to protest
the trains, and also complain about the lack of hearings in their
state—the very source of this dirtiest of all fossil fuels.

The most moving speeches came from members of the Northern Cheyenne,
Crow, Spokane, and Yakima Indian tribes. A Northern Cheyenne man said
that he once made good money in the mines, but now he regrets the
scars he and others have left on their sacred land.

Coal industry officials have told the Spokane City Council that over
the next decade up to 68 additional trains would be needed to haul the
coal destined for Asia.  Without exception the railway engineers,
however, said that would be impossible, because the rail corridor,
especially through Spokane, is already near capacity.  The BNSF has
been silent on plans to lay more track, build overpasses over highly
trafficked roads, and improve crossing gates so that warning horns are
unnecessary.

The locomotive drivers were not entirely in agreement about how much
coal dust their trains lose along the way.  Most said none and another
said “not that much.” Their employer, however, has been very honest
about coal dust shedding. BNSF tests have revealed that as much as 15
tons of coal dust can escape from an uncovered train after a 567-mile
haul. A spokesman added that most of the loss happens during the first
100 miles.

A former railway executive who once raised concerns about the
environmental dangers of shipping coal is now a vintner on the Oregon
side of the Columbia River. A video shows him at the bottom of his
property digging up handfuls of coal near the rails, 700 miles from
the mines.  He is afraid that, if coal train traffic increases
significantly, his grapes will start tasting like tar.

A closed canopy on the coal cars would increase the risk of
spontaneous combustion, and shippers claim that ventilated tops are
too expensive.  Some of the trains have their cars coated with
surfactant, sometimes called “coal car” hairspray.  One can test the
effectiveness of this solution with a simple experiment. Place the
treated coal in a glass jar and shake it to simulate a moving coal
car.  If the lid is removed, fumes containing methane steams out of
the jar giving the distinct impression that they will explode.  It has
been determined that the soft coal from the Powder River Basin is
particularly inclined to disintegrate and produce dust.

Several railway workers testified that there is no difference to
public health between shipping coal versus grain or potash.  Grain and
potash, however, are hauled in covered hoppers and the hazards in
producing and storing them are far less.  Wheat dust is combustible
and can affect the respiratory system, but these are not dangers to
general public health.
This is also the case for potash mining. Here is a summary of a
medical study of Canadian potash miners: there were “symptoms of grade
I chronic phlegm production, and mild shortness of breath and chronic
cough were more common in the higher exposure groups, but episodes of
chest illness were not. Severe respiratory symptoms were rare.”

With more hearings scheduled for Vancouver, Portland, and Seattle
let’s hope that the Army Corps will kill these unwise plans.

Nick Gier taught philosophy at the University of Idaho for 31 years.
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