CN Rail: How Do We Sleep Beside an Anaconda?

The Robson Valley Times

BY PETER EWART Tuesday, 23 August 2005

Should people in McBride and other towns be concerned about the safety of the rail cars that snake through their communities and roll by their lakes, rivers, farms?

On August 3, a CN Rail train went off the tracks near Wabamun, Alberta, spilling over 700,000 litres of heavy fuel oil and leaching hundreds of thousands of litres of thick, black oil into Lake Wabamun, killing fish, wildlife and vegetation.

Two days later, another CN train derailed and sent a ruptured boxcar with 41,000 litres of highly corrosive sodium hydroxide into the Cheakamus River north of Vancouver, causing the river to turn from deep green to brown, instantly killing thousands of fish.

Isolated incidents? Hardly. In January of this year, a CN train carrying hazardous materials derailed in Winnipeg causing a temporary evacuation of nearby residents. And there have been other serious derailments at CN operations in both Canada and the U.S.

Closer to home, it was only two years ago that a CN freight engineer and conductor were killed during a derailment near McBride caused by a trestle fire.

For some time now, rail unions have been warning that, after being privatized in the early 1990s, CN has engaged in massive downsizing. This has resulted in a deteriorating safety record at the railway. CN dismisses the safety concerns raised by the unions and environmentalists, by claiming that CN is the safest railway in North America.

So, arguments aside, is there cause for concern in communities such as McBride and Prince George?

A huge amount of hazardous material does pass over the CN lines in BC. Rail cars bulging with sulphur, caustic soda, acids, chlorine and a host of other toxic chemicals, routinely make their way through communities. If there was a derailment, any one of these chemicals could cause massive damage to the fish and wildlife habitat of the rivers, devastate water treatment and recreational facilities, and threaten communities.

Given the above, it was not reassuring for Northerners to hear two years ago CN challenging the Transportation Safety Board’s conclusions that CN’s safety and inspection practices contributed to the McBride trestle fire. This suggested that CN had learned nothing from the tragedy.

And it is not reassuring today to see how CN is reacting to the Lake Wabamun and Cheakamus derailments. In Wabamun, the huge spill has been a disaster for the community. After the spill happened, residents quickly became concerned that CN was not aggressively taking measures to contain it. But worse was yet to come. The Alberta Environment Ministry was told by CN that the spill only involved fuel oil. As a result, the Ministry issued statements indicating that residents could continue to drink and wash with the lake water. But further investigation showed that a boxcar with 90,000 litres of highly toxic pole treating oil had also ruptured and leaked into the lake. CN appears to have sat on this information for a number of days.

Regarding the BC spill, residents and vacationers around the fast-moving Cheakamus River complained that they didn’t receive any information until 12 hours after it had taken place.

The result of all this has been a public relations disaster for CN, and has raised concern in many communities about CN’s commitment to public safety. The question arises: Can a large private monopoly, with ownership based in the U.S., be trusted to look after such a vital public interest as the main railway system in North Western Canada?

CN, a Crown corporation, was sold off by the federal government in the 1990s to largely American interests. Since then, it has evolved into a continental rail giant that now includes BC Rail.

Transportation and utility companies can be especially powerful monopolies because often they are “the only game in town”, holding to ransom other sectors of industry. Politically, they have enormous clout. Comparing a small business to a monopoly such as CN is like comparing a garter snake to an anaconda.

When key sectors of the economy like rail are controlled by giant private monopolies, public safety risks being trumped by private interest.

How do we sleep beside an anaconda? With great care. Whatever we do, we should not close our eyes.

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