(The following appeared on the Indland News Today website on September 2, 2010.)
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — The BNSF rail yard has been deemed by the California Air Resources Board to pose the worst health risk among the state’s 18 rail yards.
A $1 million AQMD grant will fund a study on the health impact of those living near the local yards.
The Loma Linda School of Public Health has teamed up with an environmental justice organization for the 2-year study. Director Penny Newman says they’ll be going door-to-door near the San Bernardino yards “asking people about their health. We know there are a lot of health issues in the neighborhood near the BNSF rail yards.”
Although the railroad claims they’re making cleaner locomotives, Mrs. Newman points out “We don’t have any way of verifying their claims.”
There is no actual data on the adverse health effects experienced by people living near the San Bernardino BNSF yards.