Just down the slope behind the Parade of Homes, screened by trees and shrubs, lies the BNSF railroad track. Grain trains going to the Port of Vancouver and the sleek passenger trains on the Cascades route are one thing but uncovered 125 car coal trains are quite another. Each car spews a pound of dust per mile.
Cowlitz County is considering permitting a coal terminal on Longview’s waterfront for exporting to China. Wyoming and Montana coal will come by rail along the Gorge to Vancouver and north to Longview. How many coal trains might there be? Could be 10, 20 or 40 per day. Depends.
It is astonishing how unaware Vancouver residents, especially in the areas most affected, are of this serious threat to their health, air quality and damage to their neighborhoods. Longview citizens are organizing to resist this project. See Landowners and Citizens for a Safe Community to learn how damaging coal trains are at http://www.lcsco.org. To see how close your residence is to the proposed coal train route check it at http://www.sierraclub.org/coal/coalexport. Here’s an issue for neighborhood associations. This means you, Esther Short, Hough, Carter Park, Lincoln, Northwest, Felida, Old Evergreen Highway and Riverview.
Tedine Roos
Felida
