Coal Export Trains Planned through Pacific Northwest to China

Coal companies are planning to strip mine coal from Wyoming and Montana, specifically the Powder River Basin. The plan is to place the coal on freight trains through Missoula, Montana, and Spokane, Washington, then splitting up to Pacific Northwest ports such as Grays Harbor, Longview, and Bellingham in Washington state, and Coos Bay and St. Helens in Oregon state.

The planned trains would bring additional 40 to 50 coal trains through Missoula and Spokane. The trains bring coal dust, noise, and train track use. Vehicles such as cars, trucks, busses, ambulances, would be forced to wait at train crossings during the lengthy coal trains.

As America and other countries turn to energy sources other than coal, the companies are seeking coal customers overseas. In the instance of China, the coal would be carted through Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Washington, and Oregon, then shipped to Asia. The burning coal residue would then blow back via the jet stream to America.

For more information and ways to end the dependence on coal, with its toxic dust, carinogens, and accompanying noise pollution and disruption of community life, Power Past Coal offers a webpage, along with Sierra Club.