(The following article by Brady Averill was posted on the Minneapolis Star Tribune website on September 13.)
WASHINGTON – An eight-year wait for an answer to whether the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad (DM&E) will be allowed to expand in southern Minnesota is almost over.
The Federal Rail Administration is collecting public comments on environmental impact statements for the project until Oct. 10. After the comments are reviewed and the administrator signs off, the agency has 90 days to approve or deny the $2.5 billion loan for the DM&E. As soon as the clock begins, the administration can decide at any point, spokesman Steve Kulm said.
Farm and city leaders from throughout Minnesota went to Washington on Wednesday to ask the state’s congressional delegation for its support during the review’s final days.
“This is so important to agriculture that we get a rail line that we can rely on,” said Kevin Paap, president of the Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation.
Leaders contend that an improved and expanded rail line would be an economic boon for small communities. It would help lower the cost of coal, transport crops and bring jobs, they said.
“You’ve all heard of a ripple effect. This is not a ripple effect,” said Robert Gervais, director of the Economic Devolopment Authority in Tracy, Minn. “This is a splash. This is like dropping a rock in a 5-gallon pail of water.”
The Rochester Coalition, made up of local and Mayo Clinic leaders, say otherwise. They expect to file a formal comment before the October deadline. The coalition is worried about additional train cars running through the town and potential spills.
The coalition said this summer that the DM&E was unsafe. It said that between 2000 and 2005, Federal Rail Administration reports show that the DM&E had 900 train accidents and incidents, which resulted in 24 deaths.
Last week, two Republican lawmakers, Sen. Norm Coleman and Rep. Gil Gutknecht, sent a letter asking the Department of Transportation to study how Rochester can be protected if the loan is approved. They expect to hear from the department within a week.
“We have serious concerns about a loan being approved before there’s a plan to protect Rochester,” Mayo Clinic spokesman Lee Aase said.