Comment EI-30088
Received or sent (printed as 7/23/2019)
Having been employed in the early 1980's as a project consultant for energy development impacts in the Uintah Basin I am somewhat knowledgeable about fossil fuel development in that area. My area of focus concerned oil shale and tar sands development and it's socioeconomic impacts related to boom bust economic cycles along with environmental impacts on local emergency services. Since the proposed railway intends to service the exponential fossil fuel extraction projected in the basin I would assume that (shale fracking) figures heavily into development plans, thus placing an enormous strain on already severely strained water resources in the area not to speak of the related negative impacts associated with ground water contamination , depletion of existing resources and disposal problems associated with waste water contamination. . The mere idea of constructing the railway in the area creates "if they built it they will come" mentality which increases the likelihood that the project with all it's negative impacts will actually come to fruition .
Submitted by: Thomas Smith · Salt lake city, UT
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-36284/comment/EI-30088 · back to the docket sheet