Canada — Train De-railments Harming Environment

http://www.theinfozone.net

Updated — August 9, 2005, (IZ)
Canadian National Train Derailment Damages River Dumps 51,000 Litres of Chemical into Ocean — First Derailment Poured Fuel Oil into a Lake

A Canadian National Railways (CN) freight train de-railed in British Columbia, Canada dumping toxic sodium hydroxide into the Cheakamus River which flows into the Pacific Ocean. The accident, the second derailment of a freight train in western Canada in a week, killed and injured fish in the river.

The dumping of the sodium hydroxide into the Cheakamus River that flows into the Pacific Ocean has almost disappeared from the national media in Canada and has had not reports in the American media. Local residents in the areas affected are getting increasingly angry as the lack of response from both CN and the federal government of Canada who are responsible for national transportation.
Location of Environmental Damage

The CN freight train was crossing a bridge when it de-railed. Cars fell 12 metres (40 feet) into a canyon on Friday. One of the rail cars carrying sodium hydroxide, broke open and spilled over 51 thousand litres (13,470 US Gallons) of the corrosive liquid into the river.

The banks of the river are lined with dead fish. Evan Phillips of Canadian Outback Adventures, who runs rafting tours in the area said "It's a critical time for fishing. There is a pink (salmon) run every two years and they're running up the river right now. The salmon that run up there, the chum, the pink and steelhead — this is a critical time for steelhead right now." The full effects on wildlife, including deer, otters, and waterfowl is not yet known.

This is the second train de-railment that CN has had in the past week. A train in the province of Alberta, derailed and dumped thousands of litres of fuel oil in a lake near Wabaum Alberta. Residents in both areas have complained about the slow response of CN to the accidents.

The Vancouver Coastal Health Authority had issued a warning stating that no one should drink, swim, or eat any fish or wildlife near the river. People drawing their drinking water from wells within 100 metres of the river are also being advised to find other sources.

The warning claim residents say came too late. "Over 10 hours passed before the warning was released. People were bathing and drawing water out of the Cheakamus River all day long. They were not warned and that is a major issue," reported one local resident. The ban has since been lifted.

In Wabaum, Alberta, where a train derailed on August 3, 2005, CN has been accused of being slow to respond to the environmental damage and to concerns of residents. In a media release from CN on August 7, 2005, states "10 contracted firms are being employed in this effort. 154 trained specialists are working in and around the lake. As of Saturday evening, 9,000 feet of containment boom are deployed on the lake. On Saturday, 18,000 feet of absorbent booms were deployed at locations around the lake. Sunday, CN will have 16,000 feet of new containment booms to deploy. This material arrived overnight. Another 44,000 feet of containment boom will arrive Monday for further deployment."

Local residents in Wabaum, Alberta blocked the CN rail line on Friday as a protest against what they saw as CN's lack of effort in the cleanup. The company has apologized to the residents and appears to have put more effort into the cleanup work.

On August 8th, CN in a media release states:
"CN in conjunction with government agencies have determined that a product, carried in one of the cars that derailed near Wabamun Alberta on August 3, contained chemical components not fully reflected in the shipping information provided to CN. The product, which was listed on the manifest, as "lube oil" is not designated by Transport Canada as a dangerous commodity. However, detailed chemical analysis of this product received today from the shipper raised concerns with provincial and federal environmental and health agencies. As a result, Capital Health has issued an advisory that water not be used in the Wabamun area, until the results of ongoing soil and water testing at the Sunset Avenue derailment site are analyzed and an assessment completed, which is expected to be done by mid-week."

CN has still not issued any media releases on the spill near Squamish, British Columbia.

-30-