(The following story by Merilee Reinke appeared on The Daily Telegram website on April 26.)
SUPERIOR, Wisc. — A proposal to reroute the rail transport of taconite away from the Twin Ports is meeting with disfavor from local officials.
A new task force, made up of Superior Mayor Dave Ross and Duluth Mayor Herb Bergson, railroad officials and community leaders is fighting a plan by mining officials to take Iron Range taconite and shuttle it to Taconite Harbor rather than to Superior and Duluth. This could mean the loss of jobs for Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Railroad and Duluth, Mesabi and Iron Range Railroad employees and a big blow to the economies of the two cities.
According to Ross, the reroute would cause the loss of 75 to 100 jobs and cause the DM&IR dock to close, followed by BNSF’s dock by 2007. Of the 85 jobs at the Superior loading facility, 20 are Duluth residents and of the 10 workers on the train crew, eight live across the bridge.
Adding to the agony would be the loss of $1 million in taxes that Superior collects from Burlington Northern, which Ross said would have a “huge financial impact” on the area.
Local companies would also suffer — BNSF spends $6 million a year in local purchases, said Brian Sweeney, BNSF executive director of government affairs in St. Paul.
“The threat is real,” said Ross. “This is truly a Twin Ports issue.”
To the mining company, Cleveland-Cliffs Inc., however, the move would mean financial savings, in part because the mineral would be transported 75 fewer miles. The reroute would save $1.50 per ton, say mining officials. Bill Anderson, a former BNSF employee, calculates it costs $3.50 per ton now and that savings forecasts have been inflated. Presently, about 20 million tons of the low grade iron ore enters the Twin Ports each year.
“I don’t think their capital investment can justify this long term,” said Anderson.
To make the reroute work, mine officials are seeking $40 million in federal monies to upgrade the track system and build a storage facility at Taconite Harbor. This alarms Bergson, who said the federal government should not be enabling the loss of people’s livelihoods. He also said the forecasted savings are not enough to rationalize the reroute.
Patrick Dorin, author of 30 books on the railroad industry and member of the task force, said shifting taconite to Taconite Harbor would cause logistics problems. For example, he said, it would take more time to load the ore onto ships. He also said tracks leading to Taconite Harbor are not near the condition of Superior and Duluth’s rail system, causing traffic congestion and subsequent need of precise scheduling for loading the vessels.
In comparison, in the Twin Ports, taconite can be stored and loaded onto a ship later.
To combat the Cleveland Cliffs’ proposal, a task force met Friday morning to brainstorm ideas to maintain the present system. One area to be looked at is what can be done locally to make Cleveland Cliffs continue shipping to Duluth and Superior. In the meantime, task force members will be gathering more information on the mining company’s plans and government funding requirements.
“I can’t face this possibility sitting down,” Ross said. “We are going to stay on top of it. For me the clock is ticking.”
“We are going to do what we can,” agreed Rep. Frank Boyle, D-Superior.