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>From the Surface Transportation Board, Washington, D.C.
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The Surface Transportation Board announced today that its Section of
Environmental Analysis (SEA) has issued the Final Environmental Impact
Statement (Final EIS) for the proposed acquisition by the Canadian National
Railway and Grand Trunk Corporation of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway
(EJ&E). Issuance of the Final EIS completes SEA's environmental review
process. Upon reviewing and considering the Final EIS, and the extensive
transportation related and environmental record developed in this case, the
Board will independently issue a final decision either denying, approving,
or approving with conditions the pending merger. Completion of SEA's Final
EIS should not be interpreted as determinative of the Board's ultimate
final decision on the merger.
The Final EIS was issued today in the
proceeding entitled Canadian National Ry.
And Grand Trunk Corp.—EJ&E West Co., STB
Finance Docket No. 35087(
http://www.stb.dot.gov/decisions/readingroom.nsf/WebDecisionID/39515?OpenDocument
)
. It is also available for viewing and
downloading via the Board's Web site at
http://www.stb.dot.gov, under "E-LIBRARY,"
then under "Decisions & Notices," beneath
the date "12/05/08."
A Fact Sheet is attached.
###
Fact Sheet
The Final Environmental Impact Statement
(Final EIS) completes the evaluation by the
Board's Section of Environmental Analysis
(SEA) of the potential environmental impacts
of proposed acquisition of the Elgin, Joliet
& Eastern Railway (EJ&E) by the Canadian
National Railway and Grand Trunk Corporation
(Applicants). More than 9,500 comments on
the Draft EIS were received by SEA from
members of the public, agencies, elected
officials, organizations, businesses, and
other stakeholders during the 60-day comment
period.
The Final EIS responds to comments on the
Draft EIS; discusses SEA's conclusions
regarding potential environmental effects of
the proposed transaction; and reflects
additional work on issues raised during the
Draft EIS comment period. Furthermore, the
Final EIS sets forth the Applicants'
voluntary mitigation measures and SEA's
final environmental mitigation
recommendations to the Board, including the
requirement that the Applicants comply with
the terms of their negotiated agreements
with the communities of Joliet and Crest
Hill, Illinois.
In the Final EIS, SEA identifies both
potential beneficial and adverse
environmental effects associated with the
proposed transaction. The proposed
acquisition would have beneficial
environmental effects on communities located
along the five CN rail lines leading into
and out of Chicago, including decreased
traffic delay, reduced noise, reduced air
emissions, and fewer shipments of hazardous
materials by rail. Communities along the
EJ&E rail line, however, would experience
adverse effects, including increased
traffic, delay, noise, air emissions, and
the shipment of hazardous materials by rail.
Further, the Final EIS concludes that the
pre-existing conditions in communities on
the EJ&E rail line—that is, substantial
vehicular delay during peak travel times,
train noise, and safety risks due to the
high volume of cars, trucks, and current
freight and passenger trains—are
problematic. The proposed acquisition would
likely exacerbate these pre-existing
conditions.
If the Board decides to approve the proposed
acquisition, SEA recommends that the Board
require the Applicants to implement
Applicants' 108 Voluntary Mitigation
measures. Additionally, SEA recommends
imposition of 70 additional environmental
conditions. A few of SEA's recommended
mitigation measures are highlighted below:
--Applicants shall fund 15% of the cost of
two grade separations, one at Ogden Avenue
near Aurora, Illinois, and one at Lincoln
Highway in Lynwood, Illinois.
--Applicants shall fund the installation of
CCTV cameras to assist 13 emergency service
responders in Illinois and Indiana with
timely response.
--Applicants shall fund reasonable
improvements to maintain the existing Quiet
Zone in Barrington, Illinois.
--Applicants shall establish a local
resource agency liaison or liaisons with
expertise in environmental and natural
resource management to work closely with
Federal, state, and local natural and water
resource agencies to develop adaptive
natural resource management plans.
--Applicants shall submit quarterly reports
to SEA documenting its progress in
implementing the mitigation imposed by the
Board. Applicants shall submit these
reports for 5 years from the effective date
of any final decision by the Board approving
this transaction.
As a result of the issuance of the Final
EIS, the record is now complete and the
Board is actively considering a final
decision under a range of alternatives.
While completion of the Final EIS marks a
significant milestone in the Board's review
of this pending merger, the Board Members
must independently consider the record and
develop a final decision that will
ultimately determine whether and under what
conditions the proposed merger might be
approved.
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