Emergency Move Off Long Island by Rail

[freightguy]

There has been three articles in Newsday pertaining to a huge backlog of trash that needs to moved of Long Island. The top option appears to be the Dept of Environmental Conservation granting an emergency 30 to 60 day permit to ship out by rail. Of course the devil is in the details. Hicksville team yard had been suggested as a potential site, but in an article today July 4th, it may be too far west from the huge trash build up from east end towns.

In an ironic twist of fate two articles have to stated that increased rail shipments have cutback on flatbed trucks coming to the island to backhaul the waste. BRT would be a good option, but I believe with the town of Brookhaven they have agreed to not haul trash out of the Yaphank rail facility.

If anybody can upload the Newsday articles from July 3rd/4th 2014 it explains the situation in pretty good detail concerning NYA possibly doing a MSW move off LI!

[NYCS]

DISCLAIMER: THESE PDF COPIES ARE PRESENTED FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY, AND NO COMMERCIAL RE-DISTRIBUTION IS INTENDED OR IMPLIED. ALL CONTENT IS COPYRIGHT AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OF NEWSDAY:

http://www.railnewyork.com/articles/New ... emoval.pdf

http://www.railnewyork.com/articles/New ... emoval.pdf

[Backshophoss]

If needed,empty boxcars(except for "Food Grade" cars) can be loaded with the bales of trash,a requirement of washing out the cars at the desination,after
unloading,would allow reuse of the car for other loads. NYSDEC needs to make a fast decsion NOW!

[tahawus84]

Wonder what private spur in medford they are considering?

[freightguy]

Re: Emergency Move Off Long Island by Rail
by tahawus84 » Sat Jul 05, 2014 8:20 am
Wonder what private spur in medford they meant

Anything of that magnitude it would have to be Gershow recycling. Around 2006 they actually cut back in the Synergy Gas switch to head west towards Progressive Waste/Winter Bros after a track program. I believe at the time Winter Bros wanted to move C&D out of that facility and is already by truck. Nothing has happened since then. My bet if anything moves it goes out of Brookhaven Rail Terminal. I believe the Hicksville Team yard has a restriction of cars of 80 feet or more entering the three sidings. The waste cars with lids are usually put on 89' flats. If the move actually does go forward no matter where you'll hear a "stink" about it.

[emfinite]

If they truck them half of the trip from Suffolk to Nassau, might as well bring them the whole way into NYC then transload there to wherever.

[DogBert]

That article ends by saying they need a long term solution. Uhm... duh? Sounds like officials on LI need to wake up. Trucking the never ending stream of trash is not sustainable.

[freightguy]

It looks like it there might be a deal in place to move the trash by rail.(Newsday 7/12/14) However it looks like it may coincide perfectly with the time the LIRR may go on strike.

The move may take place off the backtrack in Pineaire near Emjay Blvd. and Elm Global Logistics. To be interchanged twith CSX. It will be hauled in contract with the national waste syndicate ESI. It will be interesting to see if this move pans out and waste is finally shipped off the island by rail.

[csx8851]

So I'm not sure, but since CSX doesn't run Sundays, they will have a ton of MSW cars heading north to OP over Hells Gate on Monday the 21st?

[freightguy]

CSX 8851,

Within the next 10 days or so the move is going to occur. CSXT 8851 was head out on the trash train going towards Selkirk last night. I saw a SB move of trash cars and also on Fri 7/11. B750 brought down another 28 cars to Oak Point both empties from various companies and loads for the South Bronx. A lot of activity on the Oak Point link in a short time. I couldn't catch the power of the southbound garbage unless it was a really early WMX train from Selkirk around 8pm. Things just seem to be getting busier and busier East of Hudson!

[mwichten]

Has anyone been down there in a while? After the fire the building was in bad shape and there were mountains of garbage still inside. There was also a lot of garbage piled up outside too. Usually these things take a while to pan out while everyone bickers with the insurance companies over who pays what.

[DogBert]

One must wonder if they didn't let this crisis happen, since hauling trash by truck must be far more expensive than rail. They can fix the crisis with rail and then talk up how smoothly it went, and cheaply too.

[NYCS]

Yes, let's hope this goes smoothly and the eastern communities see the economic benefits of shipping MSW by rail. Perhaps the uptick will finally be enough to wake up other sectors too; not just MSW cartage. This could be the start of a very good thing if word spreads that NY&A is both making investments in the area and shipping by rail is more economically viable and "greener" as well. Very good news.

[Sir Ray]

Has anyone been down there in a while? After the fire the building was in bad shape and there were mountains of garbage still inside. There was also a lot of garbage piled up outside too. Usually these things take a while to pan out while everyone bickers with the insurance companies over who pays what.

Do you mean the former Emjay Environmental Site (now Island Rail Terminal)?
I'm not sure that's the place they would be loading, because although it is the most logical site, the address is different (Elm Logistics, which is a different building).

Anyway, I was in the area in May, and wrote this in the "Former Consignees" thread at the time:
"The enclosed loading and sorting building on former Emjay Environmental Site (now Island Rail Terminal, I think that's the name still on the sign) that caught fire has been fully removed, and in it's place are several large open-air storage bins with walls constructed of those large concrete blocks, loaded by several conveyor that jut over the walls. There's a small beige modular office by the entrance, but how material flows though the facility I could not see without trespassing, and that wasn't going to happen.

ETA: Key points from Newsday article a few days back:

On Thursday evening, the Town of Islip's planning board unanimously approved a special permit for Elm Global Logistics, the distribution facility at 50 Emjay Blvd., Brentwood, to enable vehicle repair and additional parking.
The facility, in an industrial zone with close access to the Long Island Expressway, backs on to the eastern buffer of the Sagtikos State Parkway just south of the LIE and has an existing rail spur.
Under the deal, the garbage will enter the facility already encased in plastic bales and be loaded on tub-shaped railcars called "gondolas" that will have lids placed on them as a double protection against any trash escaping en route, sources said. Residents who abut the rail line in Queens have been vocal in their opposition to rail freight operations in the past.

(Emphasis added, because some people really do need to be slapped till they shut up...)

[mwichten]

Sir Ray, that is why I was confused. I thought the property closest to the mainline was for an enclosed warehouse building. Maybe they are just using the parking lot along the siding for the transfer as it will be pre-baled loads. Thanks for depleting the update.