(The Associated Press circulated the following article on December 4.)
GILLETTE, Wyo. — Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad has initiated court proceedings against more than a dozen northeastern Wyoming landowners for permission to look over their land for a proposed rail project.
The company filed three separate lawsuits Nov. 21 in Campbell County District Court so that they could “make surveys, studies and gather information” on private lands in several Wyoming counties, for the rail project that has generated significant opposition in Minnesota.
The Wyoming cases are not eminent domain actions. DM&E’s lawyers noted in the court documents that courts can grant access for surveys even when a company is not considering eminent domain.
The Sioux Falls, S.D.,-based company started asking some landowners for access as long ago as 1998, but they’ve always refused, according to court documents.
The company wants to rebuild 600 miles of its existing line, now mostly located in Minnesota and South Dakota, and build about 260 miles of new line in Wyoming to extend rail access to the Powder River Basin coal fields. The project would cost an estimated $6 billion.
In Minnesota, the expansion would go through the city of Rochester, which has angered many civic and business leaders there, particularly the Mayo Clinic which has raised concerns about patient safety.
This week, U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters will attend meetings in Minnesota on the expansion plan, at the invitation of U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn.
The DM&E has already secured federal regulatory approval for the project, but it is now seeking approval for a $2.3 billion loan from the Transportation Department’s Federal Railroad Administration.
Company officials say the new track would lower the railroad’s operating costs and make the routes between the coal producers and utility companies shorter and more efficient.
“This project presents a unique opportunity in an era of mergers and consolidations to create a new, ultra-efficient class I railroad that can help coal shippers meet increased demands for Powder River Basin coal,” the company’s attorneys wrote in the court paperwork.
However, landowners in Wyoming think the rail line will disrupt their ranching operations.
Dan Tracy, who is a defendant in one of the Campbell County lawsuits, said the company wants to put 13 miles worth of track on land he ranches. The line would likely run along a creek bed that is prime land for his cattle, he said.
Tracy said he also has been told that between 17 to 30 trains could come through a day. He worries about what could happen if he got bit by a rattlesnake while a mile-long train was between him and emergency care.
“I don’t want ’em through here,” Tracy said.