Colorado lawmakers ask feds to suspend Utah oil train project

A group of lawmakers on Tuesday issued the following press release about their letter to federal officials seeking the suspension the proposed Uinta Basin Railway oil train project that Eagle County is suing to stop over environmental concerns:

A bipartisan group of Colorado state lawmakers, led by Senator Dylan Roberts, D-Avon, today sent a letter urging Biden Administration officials to suspend the proposed Uinta Basin Railway Project.

In a letter to Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, the lawmakers expressed concern over the financing and potential environmental impacts of the project, and called on the Administration to oppose it.

“As legislators who represent the areas of Western Colorado that would be impacted directly by the Uinta Basin Railway Project, we write to share our significant concerns and opposition to this project,” the lawmakers wrote. “We ask that you carefully consider this project’s potential impact, including the devastating damage it could do to public health, our water resources, our environment, and our economy, when making the respective decisions charged to your departments.”

The proposed Uinta Basin Railway Project would involve the shipment of heated, waxy crude oil from Utah through Colorado’s mountain towns and communities, totaling as much as 350,000 barrels on ten, two-mile trains per day. The proposed route would closely track the path of the headwaters of the Colorado River and its tributaries, which irrigates millions of acres of farmland and provides water to more than 40 million people in the Western United States. 

The letter continued: “In light of the recent train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio and other high-profile train accidents across the country over the years, a spill on this rail line is not only a possibility, it is likely…Given the heated nature of this transport and the widespread drought we are experiencing, this project also further increases the risk of wildfire ignition across the Western Slope. By threatening our water supply and increasing wildfire risk, this project would be truly catastrophic to our constituents, our communities, and our environment.”

Lawmakers further expressed concern over the potential use of public taxpayer dollars through government approved tax-exempt private activity bonds (PABs) to finance the project, and urged the Administration to reject the plan.

“Our concerns with this project are grave and cannot be understated,”they wrote. “While we understand and support the desire to increase domestic energy supply, the potential negative impacts of this project far outweigh any economic benefit. Imperiling the future of our environment and the natural resources we depend on and treasure is not a decision that should be taken lightly.”

The letter was signed by: Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon, Senator Dylan Roberts, D-Avon, Senator Perry Will, R-New Castle, Representative Meghan Lukens, D-Steamboat Springs, Representative Barbara McLachlan, D-Durango, and Representative Elizbeth Velasco, D-Glenwood Springs.

The full letter is below:

Dear Secretary Buttigieg and Secretary Vilsack, 

As legislators who represent the areas of Western Colorado that would be impacted directly by the Uinta Basin Railway Project, we write to share our significant concerns and opposition to this project. We ask that you carefully consider this project’s potential impact, including the devastating damage it could do to public health, our water resources, our environment, and our economy, when making the respective decisions charged to your departments. Further, we find the potential use of public taxpayer dollars through government approved tax-exempt private activity bonds (PABs) to finance this project to be highly objectionable, and we would strongly urge this approach to financing be rejected. 

As you are aware, the Uinta Basin Railway Project would involve the shipment of heated waxy crude oil from Utah through Colorado, totaling as much as 350,000 barrels on ten, two-mile trains per day. This is immensely concerning given that the rail line runs right alongside the headwaters of the Colorado River and its tributaries, which provide water to over 40 million people in the Western United States, irrigate millions of acres of agricultural land, and drive our outdoor recreation and tourism industries, which are critical to our region’s and state’s economies.

In light of the recent train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio and other high-profile train accidents across the country over the years, a spill on this rail line is not only a possibility, it is likely. Such a spill would contaminate the local and regional water supply, as well as likely impact downstream consumers across the West. Given the heated nature of this transport and the widespread drought we are experiencing, this project also further increases the risk of wildfire ignition across the Western Slope. By threatening our water supply and increasing wildfire risk, this project would be truly catastrophic to our constituents, our communities, and our environment.

Our concerns with this project are grave and cannot be understated. We strongly urge you and your partners in the federal government to conduct a more thorough risk analysis in light of recent events and our pressing concerns regarding water supply and wildfire. While we understand and support the desire to increase domestic energy supply, the potential negative impacts of this project far outweigh any economic benefit. Imperiling the future of our environment and the natural resources we depend on and treasure is not a decision that should be taken lightly. Domestic energy development can and should happen through other means than this project.

A vast coalition of constituents that we represent on the Western Slope are opposed to this project, and we stand with them in this call to put a stop to this dangerous project that would jeopardize our long-term public peace, health, and safety. 

Sincerely,

Speaker Julie McCluskie
Senator Dylan Roberts
Senator Perry Will
Representative Meghan Lukens
Representative Barbara McLachlan
Representative Elizbeth Velasco

CC: Bennet, Hickenlooper, Neguse, Boebert, Polis, President Biden