Comment EI-20666
Received or sent (printed as 11/26/2014)
The Indian and Banana Rivers (estuaries) are under a lot of environmental stress and public support to do something about it is very high. New rail line for port cargo train will not go through easily without mitigating project negatives and augmenting the project benefits to the community. Here is an idea that might help make things happen in a good way for all. “Solar Powered Train Service from Port Canaveral to Titusville Inland Port” “Muck Islands provide solar power for train, safe home for river polluting muck, while providing bio cleansing services for the river and wildlife habitat” 1. Train is electric and very quiet. Nothing new here, this technology is used all over the USA in big cities and between big cities. 2. Train is powered by solar electricity generated all along the tracks and “spoil islands” that can be used to: 3. Dredge vast amounts of the “worst” black muck areas in the Brevard Indian and Banana River and barge or pump to be “sequestered” muck islands along the river route of the train. 4. Muck islands serve as bird sanctuaries, and islands are surrounded by stone shoreline that provides habitat for mangroves and all the sea life that will soon follow. Muck is sequestered like a landfill with a “cap” on top of contaminated muck covered with clean fill to allow for wildlife and small plants to take hold. 5. In addition, the “hundreds” of acres of new muck islands will also be solar fields that will power the train and extra electricity will get sold into the grid. 6. The economics – 7. already millions of $ being collected for de-mucking river etc. (see Posey’s work at fed level) 8. Use these moneys to make hundreds of new acres of usable islands. 9. The “customers” or “users” of these new islands will be; 10. wildlife, water cleaning sea life like oysters and clams, 11. solar energy – Independent power producers like Clean Footprint can rent land with a 50 year lease from Port or whomever “owns” islands, electricity production from the “project” will be sold to train operator. 12. the train operator or owner will pay for electricity to run train and solar producer will get paid and be able to pay the rent on land for 50 years. 13. The solar energy company leasing the land will pay for 50 years and this money will help retire bonds taken out to help “cap” the muck and “create” habitat for wildlife. 14. The cargo coming into the port and being transported by rail will also pay fees per ton. These fees will help support the creation of new elevated track and muck islands. Islands will support rail operations and maintenance as dry land access points to track and for energy production to drive the “zero emission solar cargo train” to Titusville. 15. In addition the use of Federal and State economic development and transportation money will help build rail system and supporting infrastructure. 16. Politics – moving the train path closer to the air force side of river (east side) away from Merritt Island, but far enough away from AFB for security purposes. This will add a lot of cost to building most of rail over water until it can turn West much closer to where it will be able to meet up with existing rail on NASA property. By avoiding North Merritt island areas you will have more support for project, along with recruiting all of the folks that would like to clean up rivers and return them to a healthier state. I share this idea with you in the hopes it will help you get rail built in a very positive way for everyone
Submitted by: John King Porter · Cape Canaveral, Florida
The Board publishes this comment in its environmental-comment table for this proceeding. It is quoted here as printed; nothing is inferred from it, and it states the commenter's own position in their own words, not this record's.
Permanent address docketyard.org/d/FD-35852/comment/EI-20666 · back to the docket sheet