[SustainableTompkins] Rail transportation and trash

Mon Mar 3 10:26:29 PST 2008

Welcome (back) to the second world, heh?

My understanding is that in Ithaca we spend about $1 million per mile 
when we have to work on our roads, so $10 million doesn't sound like so 
much.

Bethany

George Frantz wrote:
> I think Joel raises a very good point.  
>    
>   The Seneca Meadows landfill is only 1.5 miles from the railroad connecting Geneva and Auburn, which itself connects to the NYC-Albany-Buffalo mainline seven miles to the north in Lyons.  The rail system is up to it, it just needs $5-$10 million to connect Seneca Meadows to the mainline system.
>    
>   But we don't spend $5-$10 million in thic country to upgrade our rails system, because we prefer to spend $20-$30 to upgrade the highways instead.
>    
>   The most direct rail link between NYC and Seneca Meadows would actually be through Ithaca.  The railbed is even still intact.  Unfortunately it's reserved for a higher priority - the Black Diamond Trail recreational bikeway.
>    
>   And while Bill Gates is investing in the Canadian rail system, the Canadian railroads are investing in ours.  Those red locomotives you see off to the south as you drive east through Binghamton on Re 17/I-81or rumbling through Waverly are Canadian National locomotives.
>    
>   The way things are headed, maybe within the decade the Canadians will be running our railroads and the Europeans our windfarms.
>    
>   George Frantz
>    
>     
> Bethany Schroeder <nidus at pinax.com> wrote:
>   I think it's widely assumed that our rail system isn't up to the task. 
> In this case, I wonder if it wasn't an oversight or whether other 
> considerations weighed against a rail decision, such as the resource 
> having been already allocated elsewhere.
> 
> Jon recently told me that Bill Gates is a major investor in the 
> Canadian rail system. I wish he or someone with his bucks would invest 
> in ours, before it's too late.
> 
> Bethany
> 
> 
> 
> Joel and Sarah Gagnon wrote:
>> Why isn't anyone asking why bulk commodity transport like this isn't going 
>> by rail?
>>
>> Joel
>>
>> At 07:16 AM 3/3/08 -0500, you wrote:
>>> Hi Jan,
>>>
>>> Regarding Seneca Meadows, aka Mount Trashmore, the site is engineered
>>> with an impermeable layering system which seals the landfill off from
>>> the groundwater that flows into Cayuga lake. Redundancy is built into
>>> the engineering plan, which is really state-of-the-art in waste fill
>>> management. The landfill hosts an annual open house every fall and
>>> tours are available any time throughout the year, if you want to learn more.
>>>
>>> The issue of the trucks on 89 is problematic. The plan was to have
>>> trucks take the Thruway to Seneca Falls, but as fares have gone up on
>>> the highway, drivers are taking the secondary routes to save costs. I
>>> think some citizen advocacy could probably be used to reset the
>>> expectations there.
>>>
>>> Whether Seneca Falls should be a regional landfill brings up a larger
>>> question: where do our large cities put their waste? Regional
>>> landfills situated off a major highway with sealed layers to protect
>>> groundwater is the current answer. But for those living near the
>>> landfill this solution seems like urban exploitation of a rural resource
>>> (space), which the monetary incentive is supposed to compensate the
>>> community for. Maybe that's not a fair trade?
>>>
>>> Also, did you know that the methane produced from Seneca Meadows is
>>> going to be used to heat greenhouses? I believe that program is going
>>> live this year.
>>>
>>> Best,
>>>
>>> Katie Q-J
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Jan Quarles wrote:
>>>> I'm concerned about the land fill(s) surrounding Cayuga Lake, and their
>>>> effects on our water quality. We have one of NY's largest right here in
>>>> Seneca County. You can't miss it on your way up to the NY Thruway; it's a
>>>> giant mountain. It's euphemistically called "Seneca Meadows," but us 
>>> locals
>>>> refer to it as "Mount Trashmore." Seneca Falls gets big bucks for 
>>> importing
>>>> tons of garbage daily from PA, NJ, MA and NYC. Seeing all these huge 
>>> trucks
>>>> on Rte 89 every day, I got concerned about all this unfiltered garbage
>>>> coming into our region. It's enough of a challenge to deal with our own
>>>> garbage! I am especially concerned because we pump water directly from the
>>>> lake, and use it to water our big organic veggie garden. When I read last
>>>> Spring that they're expanding Mt. Trashmore, I contacted the Cayuga Lake
>>>> Watershed Network (CLWN) to see if Sharon Anderson (Steward of CLWN) knew
>>>> anything about its effect on Cayuga Lake. She wrote back that it's being
>>>> monitored by the EPA. This doesn't satisfy me, though, because we all know
>>>> that the Bush Admin. appointed the foxes to watch the hen houses. Does
>>>> anyone know about any info or citizen action on this issue?
>>>>
>>>> I also asked Sharon about the issue of WATER RIGHTS -- i.e., the
>>>> probability that private companies like CocaCola will try to purify and 
>>> sell
>>>> bottled water en masse from the lake, as companies are already doing in 
>>> Lake
>>>> Michigan and in thousands of towns in America. She said the CLWN 
>>> doesn't get
>>>> involved with that aspect of water. I think there's some action on the 
>>> State
>>>> level -- some proposed legislation to pre-empt private ownership of our
>>>> watershed, which, in my mind, belongs to us all as "the commons." I'm part
>>>> of "Back To Democracy" (based in Trumansburg) and we'd like to convene a
>>>> public meeting about water rights, as well as the effects of the land fill
>>>> and all this imported garbage on the lake, so if anyone has info on local
>>>> people who are working on these problems, it would be great connect with
>>>> them. One issue for citizens who surround the lake is: Why should Seneca
>>>> Falls benefit financially while our bodies pay the price?
>>>>
>>>> I saw a recent article in the Ithaca Times about a group of citizens
>>>> (including Robert Barton) who are mobilizing to address their concerns 
>>> about
>>>> the spreading of tons of sludge on our region's farmlands.
>>>>
>>>> I am grateful to be part of a concerned community and to be able to
>>>> communicate through this list serve. It's a wonderful means by which we 
>>> can
>>>> exercise our right to assemble in order to promote sustainability!
>>>>
>>>> - Jan
>>>>
>>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>>> From: "Joel and Sarah Gagnon" 
>>>> To: "Sustainable Tompkins County listserv"
>>>>
>>>> Sent: Thursday, February 28, 2008 12:46 PM
>>>> Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] why save water?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>> The city water source issue is more complicated than implied. Six Mile
>>>>> Creek water is often turbid. The chemicals used to clear the water have an
>>>>> associated environmental impact from their production and then disposal.
>>>>> That needs to be weighed against the energy cost of pumping lake water
>>>>> uphill to storage. Either way, conservation reduces environmental impact.
>>>>>
>>>>> Joel
>>>>>
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>>>>
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