Coal news and updates

A preliminary study by a University of Washington professor suggests coal trains could be contributing to Northwest air pollution.

 

In findings released Monday in Seattle, researcher Dan Jaffe of the UW Bothell campus said he found increases in soot and dust from trains carrying coal at two locations along the tracks: in the Columbia River Gorge and a Seattle neighborhood. His team found a significant increase in large particles after coal trains passed, compared with other train types.

 

Coal dust contains arsenic, mercury and other contaminants. The study did not identify whether the soot and dust particles were coal dust, diesel exhaust emissions from trains or other substances. Little is known about how dust from trains could impact people who live nearby.

 

The study has yet to be peer-reviewed by other scientists. The full study won’t be made public until it’s published in a scientific journal, university officials said.

 

Coal supporters called Jaffe an anti-coal activist who let his bias get in the way of his research. The study, they added, was conducted at the driest time of the year, when dust is more prevalent. Industry supporters also noted that Jaffe made the unusual move of releasing the study before peer review at a time when regulators are considering permits for two proposed coal docks in Washington, including one near Longview.

 

Jaffe dismisses those concerns. Coal opponents said his study should raise further concerns about health impacts of coal dust that wafts off trains.

 

“This is more scientific evidence that coal dust and diesel emissions will harm neighborhoods along the tracks,” Brett VandenHeuvel, executive director of Hood River-based Columbia RiverKeeper, said by email Tuesday.

 

The coal trains evaluated in Jaffe’s study were traveling from the Powder River Basin in Montana and Wyoming and headed to a port near Vancouver, B.C. Two proposed coal terminals near Bellingham and Longview could bring 20 more mile-long unit coal trains into the region daily.

 

West of Longview, Millennium Bulk Terminals has proposed building a $643 million coal dock at the former Reynolds Metals Co. site. The terminal would generate eight daily round trips through the south end of the city. Regulators are currently determining the scope of the environmental review of the project.

 

In response to Jaffe’s report, officials for Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad said trains can haul cargo much more efficiently than trucks because of their volume, and they account for fewer greenhouse gases nationwide.

 

“Rail is the most fuel efficient and environmentally friendly method for transporting freight by land,” BNSF Courtney Wallace said in a written statement.

 

Jaffe raised $24,000 for the study through a crowd-funding website.

 

Source: http://tdn.com/, AP