Glaring omissions from the recently released Draft Environmental Impact Statement on the proposed San Jacinto Rail include the impacts of a major change in land use, the cumulative loss of wetlands as a result of industrial sprawl, and effective assessment of alternative routes and pipeline safety issues, according to Jim Blackburn, chair of the Galveston Bay Conservation and Preservation Association (GBCPA).

     "We are opposed to all of the routes currently being evaluated for the San Jacinto Rail project. We consider the project to be extremely dangerous, both to the citizens living adjacent to the line and to the future of southeast Harris County as a viable residential community," Blackburn told the Houston City Council's Transportation, Infrastructure and Technology Committee this week.

     The Draft Environmental Impact Statement on  San Jacinto Rail project was released early in December by the Surface Transportation Board, the permitting agency for the project. The rail is proposed by Burlington Northern and Santa Fe (BNSF) and is designed to transport chemical cargo from Bayport to Highway 3. Meetings for the board to receive public comments on this DEIS are scheduled  for mid-January.

     GBCPA is encouraging concerned citizens to attend these public meetings and address the most serious omissions. The meetings will be held at the Pasadena Convention Center on Fairmont on Tuesday, January 14, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m., and at the Cesar Chavez High School in Houston's East End on Wednesday, January 15, also from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.

     Under the legal process, comments submitted in response to the DEIS become part of the official record and are the only evidence that the Surface Transportation Board may consider in making a decision . Similarly, if there is legal action, the evidence submitted into the record is generally the only evidence that will be heard by the reviewing court, according to Blackburn. "It is therefore crucial to submit comments on the DEIS," he said.

     Land use changes would be dramatic because the route chosen by San Jacinto Rail goes through undeveloped land west of Armand Bayou and adjoining residential development in Clear Lake City. GBCPA land use consultant Peter Brown has determined that the decision to locate the rail line through this undeveloped land would generate secondary development of industrial/commercial land uses. Such sprawl would constitute a major shift in land use and would change the character of this part of southeast Harris County.

     "This is a major impact of the San Jacinto Rail project that was not addressed in the DEIS appropriately," said Blackburn.

     Wetlands would be similarly affected.  The secondary development generated by the San Jacinto Rail line would compromise one of the last prairie pothole wetland systems in southeast Harris County. The extent of losses  and the importance of this wetland type--which has already been drastically reduced--are not fully or fairly disclosed in the DEIS.

     Another important wetland complex in this part of the county is on the site of the proposed Bayport container port. "If both the Bayport project and the San Jacinto Rail project were constructed, the last viable prairie pothole wetland systems in this part of the county would both be lost, representing a significant negative cumulative impact of these two projects. A detailed wetlands assessment is currently being undertaken by GBCPA," Blackburn said.

     The analysis of alternative routes likewise fails to disclose significant impacts. Routes to the south of Ellington Field have national security implications different from those of routes going north of Ellington. Routes north of Ellington impact the southeast water treatment system. These differences need to be fully analyzed.

     Major environmental justice issues are also associated with the route up Highway 3: "In my opinion, the selection of the northern route would be an attempt by BNSF to avoid the wealthier Anglo neighborhoods, choosing instead to impact the lower income, more predominantly minority neighborhoods because they will be less able to put together effective opposition.  An executive order was passed regarding environmental justice; its purpose was to prevent this very type of crass decision-making from occurring," Blackburn told the Houston City Council's committee.

     Finally, compatibility of pipelines and rail lines is a significant safety issue. To stave off an effort by pipelines to co-locate on rail right of ways, the rail industry has mounted a campaign in Congress regarding the incompatibility of rail lines and pipelines. The rail industry's own documents lay out the horrific accidents that can occur when a derailment occurs where pipelines are located. A study needs to be undertaken to identify the location and the contents of every pipeline that San Jacinto Rail will cross and the potential for major catastrophic fires and/or releases.

     Because  of these considerable omissions and the need for fuller analysis, GBCPA is pressing for extension of the public comments deadline to March 13. Each for their own reasons, at least eight elected officials  have also called for extension of the comment period: Mayor Lee Brown; Houston City Council Members Addie Wiseman, Shelley Sekula-Gibbs, Carroll Robinson, and Carol Alvarado; U.S. Congressman Gene Green; and State Representatives John Davis and Rick Noriega.

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Galveston Bay Conservation and Preservation Association
P.O. Box 323, Seabrook, Texas 77586
Phone: 281-326-3343
Website: www.gbcpa.org
E-mail:  gbcpa@gbcpa.org