Posted on December 9, 2024
The Army Corps of Engineers has ordered CSX to stop mining the Nolichucky riverbed for material used in railroad repairs, according to a copy of a letter shared by The Southern Environmental Law Center, which has sued over the issue.
Hurricane Helene destroyed a section of CSX railroad through the Nolichucky River Gorge. Local raft guides and environmental advocates alleged that repairs were further damaging the river. Agencies are now taking action in response.
In a letter to the company last week, Army Corps leaders said that CSX’s dredging of the river for rock was unauthorized and prohibited the company from further dredging. “Given the incidents of the recent past, we do not authorize any temporary fill or excavation for any purpose unless and until specific information is presented to USACE about the size, location, characteristics, and timeframe for any such temporary fill, and written authorization is provided to CSX,” the letter said.
The Army Corps also indicated that CSX contractors may not have been following rules the company promised to abide by. “On November 25, 2024, you were forwarded a copy of the video for your review,” the letter said. In your response, you stated that while guidance was provided to the construction crews conducting the work, it was not effective in preventing the action.”
The Southern Environmental Law Center filed a lawsuit last month on behalf of American Rivers and American Whitewater demanding that government agencies require CSX to stop mining the river bottom for railroad repairs, after receiving videos and photos that showed the company disrupting the riverbed to use river rock to shore up the new tracks.
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation also investigated the repair work, and issued a cease and desist to the company, saying it has violated its permit.
Kevin Colbourn, the national stewardship director of American Whitewater, said that citizen documentation of the work from raft guides, who could access the wild, remote parts of the gorge, was key.
“Many times before we’ve been told that it will stop or has stopped and then paddlers go out and there’s bulldozers in the river digging,” Colbourn said. “So yeah, I think it just was a series of kind of broken promises that led to this and just really exceptional participation from the public to keep an eye on things.”
Colbourn said that much of the damage on the Tennessee side of the state line has already been done, however.
“CSX continues to work collaboratively with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), and other state and federal agencies to ensure the rail infrastructure is recovered from the Nolichucky River in a safe and responsible manner,” said CSX communications officer Sheriee Bowman. “CSX remains committed to complying with USACE directives and all regulatory requirements to conduct the complex and challenging work to rebuild this infrastructure that is so vital to the regional and national supply chain.”
CSX may continue its repairs so long as it does not violate federal regulations and uses quarried rock from elsewhere to reconstruct the railroad. The Army Corps is also still allowing the company to remove railroad debris from the river.
The Army Corps of Engineers and TDEC have not yet responded to a request for comment from BPR.
