Federal board approves Kings Park rail yard proposal
Rail line on Townline Road, just south of Pulaski Road in Kings Park, as seen here in February. Credit: James Carbone
A federal agency has approved a developer's plan to build and operate a 5,000-foot rail line in Kings Park that would haul away incinerator ash and construction debris.
Townline Rail Terminal LLC has proposed the rail line, which would run parallel to the Long Island Rail Road's Port Jefferson line. Inbound trains would carry cars, lumber and materials such as sand and gravel that can be used to make concrete or asphalt. Departing trains would carry containers with up to 1,500 tons of incinerator ash.
Residents and community groups have expressed concern about potential health risks, including from the ash, as well as from train noise and fumes from incoming trucks and rail yard activities.
The federal Surface Transportation Board ruled on Aug. 14 that Townline is allowed to build and operate the new rail line, according to a copy of the decision. The company is a subsidiary of Kings Park-based CarlsonCorp.
The project must include efforts to mitigate environmental concerns, the decision said.
When mitigation measures are implemented, "there will be no potential for significant environmental impacts," the decision said.
The agency was "satisfied" that it had taken a "hard look at the potential environmental impacts associated with the proposed construction and operation" of the rail line, the decision said.
In February, the board said the project would have only "negligible impacts" on the environment. The effects could be "minimized" by adhering to dust control requirements and federal decibel noise limits for operating trains, the board has said.
The board also found the project would have "no impacts on groundwater."
In July, the Townline Association, a civic group made up of residents and property owners, asked the federal board to block the project.
Linda Henninger, the group's president, said in a statement Friday her association is "looking at all options" in response to the ruling.
At a Smithtown Town Board meeting on Aug. 13, several residents expressed concerns about the rail project.
Sable Gresh, of Commack, a resident since 1992, said she worried about the potential for poor air quality and increased traffic along Indian Head Road.
"I myself have my own breathing issues, but there are little kids here, people trying to raise a family," Gresh said. "You can’t do that with a freight yard coming in."
Smithtown officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the ruling.
But according to the decision, Smithtown officials said the line will help generate "alternative means for waste disposal given the impending closure of the Brookhaven Landfill," the decision said.
Part of the landfill on Horseblock Road is expected to close in December, when Brookhaven stops accepting construction and demolition waste.
CarlsonCorp would use the train line to ship waste off Long Island.
The new line "will facilitate the diversion of traffic from truck to rail, thereby increasing overall energy efficiency and reducing emissions from trucks," the agency wrote in its decision.
Toby Carlson, who owns CarlsonCorp, told Newsday Friday he understood residents' opposition to the project. However, he added, the federal board "made the right decisions based on all the information that was gathered over the last year and a half."
The company will now seek to finalize its site plans for the project and file zoning applications with the town. It will also file paperwork with the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation. That will trigger project reviews under the State Environmental Quality Review Act. It could take between two to three years before any construction starts, Carlson said.
A federal agency has approved a developer's plan to build and operate a 5,000-foot rail line in Kings Park that would haul away incinerator ash and construction debris.
Townline Rail Terminal LLC has proposed the rail line, which would run parallel to the Long Island Rail Road's Port Jefferson line. Inbound trains would carry cars, lumber and materials such as sand and gravel that can be used to make concrete or asphalt. Departing trains would carry containers with up to 1,500 tons of incinerator ash.
Residents and community groups have expressed concern about potential health risks, including from the ash, as well as from train noise and fumes from incoming trucks and rail yard activities.
The federal Surface Transportation Board ruled on Aug. 14 that Townline is allowed to build and operate the new rail line, according to a copy of the decision. The company is a subsidiary of Kings Park-based CarlsonCorp.
The project must include efforts to mitigate environmental concerns, the decision said.
When mitigation measures are implemented, "there will be no potential for significant environmental impacts," the decision said.
The agency was "satisfied" that it had taken a "hard look at the potential environmental impacts associated with the proposed construction and operation" of the rail line, the decision said.
In February, the board said the project would have only "negligible impacts" on the environment. The effects could be "minimized" by adhering to dust control requirements and federal decibel noise limits for operating trains, the board has said.
The board also found the project would have "no impacts on groundwater."
In July, the Townline Association, a civic group made up of residents and property owners, asked the federal board to block the project.
Linda Henninger, the group's president, said in a statement Friday her association is "looking at all options" in response to the ruling.
At a Smithtown Town Board meeting on Aug. 13, several residents expressed concerns about the rail project.
Sable Gresh, of Commack, a resident since 1992, said she worried about the potential for poor air quality and increased traffic along Indian Head Road.
"I myself have my own breathing issues, but there are little kids here, people trying to raise a family," Gresh said. "You can’t do that with a freight yard coming in."
Smithtown officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the ruling.
But according to the decision, Smithtown officials said the line will help generate "alternative means for waste disposal given the impending closure of the Brookhaven Landfill," the decision said.
Part of the landfill on Horseblock Road is expected to close in December, when Brookhaven stops accepting construction and demolition waste.
CarlsonCorp would use the train line to ship waste off Long Island.
The new line "will facilitate the diversion of traffic from truck to rail, thereby increasing overall energy efficiency and reducing emissions from trucks," the agency wrote in its decision.
Toby Carlson, who owns CarlsonCorp, told Newsday Friday he understood residents' opposition to the project. However, he added, the federal board "made the right decisions based on all the information that was gathered over the last year and a half."
The company will now seek to finalize its site plans for the project and file zoning applications with the town. It will also file paperwork with the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation. That will trigger project reviews under the State Environmental Quality Review Act. It could take between two to three years before any construction starts, Carlson said.
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