Rail News Home Union Pacific Railroad 8/30/2022 Rail News: Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad and representatives from the city of Houston, Harris County and the Bayou City Initiative announced last week they've begun discussions toward an agreement on measures to remediate a former wood-tie preserving site.The announcement follows a meeting between the railroad and other parties concerning the former Houston Wood Preserving Works Site. The Class I has notified the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) that it is involved in the discussions, UP officials said in a press release.The city, county and Bayou City Initiative have joined UP in asking for a temporary pause in the agency’s processing of a hazardous waste management permit, allowing the local parties to discuss ways to speed up remediation. The pause in processing the permit is not intended to circumvent the administrative process and does not impact private litigation, UP officials said."The well-being of all Houstonians — including our important neighbors in the Fifth Ward and those nearby — are at the heart of all our steps, rooted in compassion, collaboration and, most importantly, action," said Clint Schelbitzki, assistant vice president of public affairs for UP's southern region.UP inherited the site in 1997 after its merger with Southern Pacific Transportation Co. Since then, the Class I has conducted investigative and cleanup work under the oversight and approval of the TCEQ.In 2019, the Texas State Department of Health Services conducted a study and identified a cancer cluster in a census tract covering more than 8,000 acres, which includes the Fifth Ward neighborhood and the wood-tie site. The former Houston Wood Preserving Works Site represents 33 acres, or less than 0.4%, of the total region included in the study.On Aug. 23, UP withdrew 22 appeals related to the site. The railroad's motions are limited to property-damage claims and do not seek to dismiss any pending personal-injury claims, company officials said in a press release.