Whose Backyard?

"It has become apparent that the obligations of both companies now exceed the value of their assets, including prospective insurance recoveries, as a direct result of the tragic derailment at Lac-Megantic. A process under Chapter 11 and the CCAA is the best way to ensure fairness of treatment to all in these tragic circumstances."
"MMA wishes to continue to work with the Quebec Ministry of the Environment, the municipality of Lac-Megantic, and other government authorities in the continuing environmental remediation and clean-up as long as is necessary, and will do everything within its capacity to achieve completion of such goal."
Edward Burkhardt, chairman, Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway

Wasn't it, after all, quite predictable? Apart from a fleeting commiseration with the dreadful plight of those who had lost loved family members and friends and neighbours, and those who have lost their homes, their employment, MMA has effectively done little in the way of amelioration. The professional clean-up crews that were called aboard to perform the emergency clean-up tasks, to try to halt the spoliation of the environment through the degrading effects of crude oil spillage, never saw a dime from MMA.

The municipality forwarded a formal legal request for reimbursement of approximately $7+-million they have had to lay out for preliminary clean-up, urging the Railway to reimburse them immediately. Documents filed in an American court claim the company is in possession of between $50-million and $100-million in assets. And between $1-million and $10-million in estimated liabilities. As for cash, well, it's just too bad; documents filed in Canada state $18-million in assets.

The massive fireballs that erupted with the derailing of the MMA train hauling over 70 tank cars of crude oil, pulled by a number of unmanned locomotives, levelled the centre of the town and killed 47 people. Dozens of buildings were destroyed. Company safety policies were inadequate. Legal notices have been sent to the company from the town and the government of Quebec, reminding it of its environmental responsibility.

Both the provincial and federal governments have promised the municipality $60-million for emergency assistance and long-term reconstruction help. People living closest to the explosions, who lost a house or lived where the ground has been too heavily contaminated with crude oil have been informed they won't be returning any time soon; they are effectively, for the time being, homeless. And they are shocked the second time around.

"I wouldn't have wanted to be in their shoes, let's just put it that way. A lot of them thought they'd be getting good news but, sadly, that's not what happened. Some people found out for the first time that their house could be destroyed because of contamination", said Nicolas Carette, Lac-Meganic spokesperson, of the results of a community meeting updating residents.

"We don't know exactly how many homes will need to be destroyed, but obviously, for the people going through this, it's not easy to live with that uncertainty", he said. Moving crude oil by train is more likely to cause accidents than using a pipeline. Americans, particularly those in the diehard environmental movement in the U.S., accuse Canada of planning to place their country in potential danger from pipeline spills through the proposed Keystone XL pipeline.

And here is an American rail company heedlessly using tank cars inappropriate for the task at hand, moving crude oil that has been mixed with volatile chemicals, unwilling to professionally train their employees in the correct and safe methodology and best practices to ensure that nothing of this kind occurs -- and this is the result.

Not in my backyard, but perfectly all right, chum, in yours.