Comment EI-34283
Received or sent (printed as 8/25/2026)
From an emergency management perspective, we request that the environmental review consider any changes in rail operations that could affect emergency response capabilities within Doña Ana County, including changes in frequency, train length, hazardous materials movements, rail-yard activity, or the duration and frequency of blocked at-grade crossings. Of particular concern are potential impacts to: Emergency response travel times for fire, EMS, law enforcement, and other public safety agencies when at-grade crossings are blocked or experience increased rail traffic. Access to hospitals, fire stations, evacuation routes, and other critical facilities and infrastructure The volume, type, routing, and frequency of hazardous materials transported through the county, including any resulting change in derailment, spill, fire, or hazardous materials response risk Local emergency planning assumptions and resource requirements associated with a change in rail traffic or hazardous materials transportation Railroad notification and coordination procedures with response agencies The need for updated emergency response information, training, exercises, commodity-flow information, and coordination with the railroad following any operational changes resulting from the transaction Potential impacts to evacuation, sheltering, or other protective-action strategies in communities adjacent to rail corridors We recommend that the Environmental Impact Statement identify locations where the transaction is expected to result in material changes to train frequency, train length, hazardous materials traffic, or crossing blockage within Doña Ana County and evaluate the resulting effects on emergency response and community safety. We would also appreciate the opportunity to review more detailed operational information affecting our jurisdiction as the environmental review progresses and to provide additional comments once projected changes are better defined.
Submitted by: Amanda Bowen · Dona Ana County Office of Emergency Management · Las Cruces, NM
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-36873/comment/EI-34283 · back to the docket sheet