Comment EI-20756
Received or sent (printed as 12/16/2014)
Both the exponential growth of Port Canaveral and the slow demise of the Indian River Lagoon have been well documented in the media. Growth and money vs. the environment. As a local resident for the last 60 yrs. and living on the shores of the lagoon for the past 21 yrs., I see the recent changes and future plans for the port as a trend to attract tourists and cargo and not as a destination for local residents. Bringing jobs and money into the local economy of course is not a bad thing, but not at the expense of local taxpayers and an already very fragile ecosystem. A rail system across even a portion of this vulnerable habitat is not acceptable. Loss of seagrass, air pollution, noise, encroachment into local neighborhoods and impacts to wildlife are just a few of the overwhelming issues that make this railway totally ludicrous. Of the most concern to me is the impact on the lagoon. After all that has been reported by the scientific community about the poor health of this habitat, even the thought of building any type of structure through its sensitive waters is ridiculous. Something that no one has mentioned in the articles that I have read is the fact that train car suspensions, wheels and couplers require plenty of lubrication to keep them in proper working condition. Where do you think the excess oil and other lubricants are going to end up? They will make their way onto the tracks/trestles and be washed into the lagoon by rainfall. I'm no scientist, but I don't think it takes one to realize the potential disaster that this could bring. Homeowners on the lagoon have restrictions as to the size and design of docks/structures as to not harm current or future grass beds - how is it even possible that we could allow a structure such as a rail system to cross this fragile environment and destroy acres of grass beds. I sure hope cooler heads will prevail and other means will be sought to resolve this issue.
Submitted by: Greg Zeller · Merritt Island, 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-20756 · back to the docket sheet