CSX Intermodal FacilityElkridge / Hanover

GECA Intermodal Committee April 21, 2011

THIS FACILITY DOES NOT BELONG NEXT TO THIS MANY HOMES

• Elkridge should be removed from the list of sites immediately.

• We ask you, our elected representatives, to accomplish this.

• You control the public funding.

• NEPA is not a factor in funding the project.

The ProposedSite

• Single-stack trains from Seagirt become double-stack.• Trucking for local distribution.• 24 Hours / Day – 7 Days / Week – 365 Days / Year.• $75M MDOT Investment.

The ProposedSite

• 365 homes within 1/4 mile of this site.

• The value of these homesis approximately$150 million.

• When MDOT spends $75M on the intermodal terminal, they are in effect spending our tax dollars to transfer the value of our property to CSX.

• We are organized and we will protect our investment.

Neighborhood Impact• There is no way to “mitigate” the damage from an intermodal

site so close to homes: the noise, the lights, the vibrations, the traffic 24/7, 365 days a year would make life unbearable and make our homes unsellable. And CSX is not going to buy all these houses.

• If the CSX facility makes the Howard County School Board reconsider building a school 3/4 mile away, then how could the county and state allow it to be built next to hundreds of homes?

• Just being on the list of possible sites has devalued our homes and made them unsellable.

Neighborhood: Before & After

What an Intermodal Site Brings to a CommunityNoise

"Residents of Ridgefield Park, N.J., listen to as many as 13 diesel train engines idling 24 hours a day.“ There was constant rumbling...and a high-pitched squealing noise." "There is a steady rumble, punctuated by loud honks and mechanical gasps—the sounds of the Cicero Intermodal Facility.""The tractor-trailers have clanged all night...Residents of formerly quiet neighborhoods are sleep-deprived and angry.""CSX agreed in 2007 to give the Cumberland Valley animal shelter $600,000 if the shelter would relocate. CSX was building a rail-truck terminal next door. Shelter officials feared the noise would stress the cats and dogs."  [but apparently it's okay to stress people...]

 Damaged Health"The spew from idling locomotives contains 5.5 times more of the most toxic particles than emissions from diesel-powered trucks on freeways." "Diesel exhaust can be of particular concern since it is emitted close to the ground and contains more of the ultrafine particles that can penetrate deep into the lungs and cross into the blood stream.""Residents near rail yards would also be expected to suffer asthma attacks and other respiratory and cardiac disease--and premature death--at a higher rate. 

More Effects...Vibrations

"The vibrations that the freight train causes are nothing compared to the sonic bombs that go off when the freight cars detach and attach—also the horns and brakes are unbelievable."There is "constant vibration, exceedingly high noise, and violent shocks coming from the rail yard. The shocks and vibrations also allegedly have caused their homes to shift and crack."

PollutionThese facilities "disrupt habitat and can contribute to the loss of green and open space. The movement of freight into, out of, and through facilities and on freight corridors contributes to regional and local air pollution. Fueling, maintenance, cleaning and other routine operational activities can lead to pollutants in surrounding surface and ground waters and soils. Additionally, the land uses associated with freight facilities and movement often consists of large amounts of impervious surfaces which can lead to increased non-point source stormwater runoff into surrounding waterways."

 Destruction of Neighborhoods  "Your homes will become your death traps as nobody will buy your home when they see what is in your back yard." A resident of Lakeland, Florida, who lives near a CSX Intermodal Facility.  

• Environmental impact on Deep Run and the Bay.

• Hanover and Race Roads are a major bicycle route. (Designated connector between the BWI Bike Trail and the Grist Mill Trail, part of the East Coast Greenway).

• Patapsco Valley State Park along Race Rd. is a popular bird and wildlife viewing area.

• Regional Traffic/Fire and Safety Impact.

Other Impacts

NEPA Will Not Protect Our Interests

• We believe CSX has already selected Elkridge, and the input to NEPA has been constructed to implement that decision.

o The National Gateway project has identified every clearance project between here and Ohio. The closest one is MD 175. That suggests CSX has already decided the Baltimore facility will be north of MD 175.

o A CSX subsidiary spent $900K to buy 2 properties in December 2010, while there were still 12 candidate sites, three months before the final list of four sites was announced. CSX has not purchased property at any other site.

• There was no transparency in the selection process until the potential sites were narrowed to four.

Redo Intermodal Site Selection Before NEPA

• The selection of sites prior to NEPA should be an open, transparent public process.

• Establishing criteria for sites should be an open process.

• Selecting sites should be an open process.

• Proximity to Residential Neighborhoods should be an explicit criteria, as in the case of New York State:

“Suitability of site: The intermodal yard site must not be adjacent to or negatively impact residential neighborhoods.”

• The selection process should be redone, with explicit criteria to reflect the impact on nearby residences.

• The Elkridge site should never have chosen in the first place.

Action• We desperately want and need your help in

preventing the proposed CSX site from ruining our lives, our health, and our lifetime investment in our homes. 

• We need to be off of the list now.

• We want the site selection process restarted so that it is open and transparent.

• The site selection process should explicitly consider nearby residential neighborhoods, so that Elkridge is off the list.

• Don’t let Elkridge be known for setting the national precedent for the number of homes affected by a new rail yard.

These are powerful images—they

make a point no words can.

Where are the adjacent neighborhoods?

The animal shelter is here

We zoomed in so you could see what’s around the intermodal:Lots of businesses—doesn’t exactly look like Elkridge, does it!

This is the site where CSX plans to build an intermodal inWinter Haven, Florida. Notice how few houses are affected,yet they have put up a mighty fight against CSX, to the point where the city of Winter Haven has told CSX to buy these homes.

Action• CSX Corporation 8K SEC Filing – Apr 19, 2011

• Net Income Up 29.1% over year ago quarter

• Revenue up 12.8%

• “CSX delivered record financial results and achieved growth” said Michael J. Ward, chairman, president and chief executive office.”