The CTU Bull Moose Committee (BM), CTU’s committee for legislative advocacy, briefed the CTU Board in January. One of the items BM is following is the Uinta Basin Railway, in NE Utah. All CCTU members need to know how this project will impact rail traffic in CO.
This proposed 88-mile railway connects Uinta Basin oil fields to the main rail line going west to east following the Colorado River, through the Moffat Tunnel and down to Denver before heading south to Gulf Coast refineries. The crude is too solid to move through a pipeline so the railway solution enables producers to quadruple oil extraction, potentially producing 350,000 barrels of oil per day (BOPD). The project’s Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) estimates up to 10 trains of the waxy crude will move through CO daily. Conservation concerns range from a significant climate change impact from ramped-up production to the increased potential for accidents and spills in sensitive watersheds. The added rail traffic on the Moffat line will increase pressure to re-open the Tennessee Pass Line (TPL) along the Arkansas River through Brown’s Canyon, essentially Dotsero to Pueblo. Today the only train using this rail is the Royal Gorge Route tourist rail running from Canon City to Parkdale. The rail between Parkdale and Dotsero is not active.
The Uinta Basin Railway EIS was approved by the federal Surface Transportation Board (STB) in December. The connector rail has tremendous political support in Utah, including both Senators, the Governor, and multiple counties’ commissioners due to the economic value. The Utah TU council did not take a position on the proposal. The Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/ has been spearheading pushback on this project and have been quite harsh in written comments to the STB. CTU’s traditional hunting and angling conservation allies have not signed onto the CBD effort.
With federal approval in place, Bull Moose will focus on understanding the risks to Colorado waters, specifically the Colorado, Eagle and Arkansas River Valleys. Senator Bennet has already expressed concerns about using the TPL line for oil trains, new passenger rail however, is another matter: Bennet railway article . Protecting Brown’s canyon from any reopening of the TPL is a major concern of the Friends of Brown’s Canyon. See their comments here: https://brownscanyon.org/help-keep-oil-trains-out-of-colorado/