Submission Number: UBR-DEIS-00667 

Received: 2/12/2021 4:06:17 PM
Commenter: Connie Cluff
Organization: 
State: Utah

Agency: STB
Initiative: Uinta Basin Railway EIS
Attachments: No Attachments
Submission Text
I've been following this situation for the past year and a half. I read the economic impact study as well as the environmental impact study. It appears that even though both economically and environmentally there will be a lot of impact to individuals who own property in these affected mountain areas as well as many species of animals and birds, what matters is just the business interests who will make lots of money off of this mis-adventure. Why is it that the little people who scraped and saved to have a little piece of heaven in nature without the encroachment of noise and people and the hustle and bustle of cities, is now being threatened by more noise and a disruption of nature? The animals and birds don't really matter. Even the sage grouse, which is protected doesn't matter as long as money is being made by individuals with a little power. Those being impacted are real people. They have a close community and have worked hard to keep it as natural as possible. Having to take a railroad through it is inexcusable. The construction and devastation of drilling through a mountain in addition to laying tracks and a bridge over the ravines fault line seems incredibly stupid. There have to be better ways of getting the railway through. In the materials I've read there is even a question about how much oil there is actually available. It seems that estimates are that by increasing to the number of barrells they are thinking of transporting, it will diminish the available oil in less than 10 years. Then the basin will be empty of oil and the railroad will not have been paid for yet. The basin will be a ghost town because of this move. The truckers will be out of their jobs, too. But all of the individuals involved will have fleeced the accounts of their stockpile of funding as well as their ways of making a living. What a greedy, short-sighted proposal. From the beginning those doing the proposal and studies have never had answers to the hard questions. They talk a big talk, but the numbers and plans don't have hard evidence of even working. And, as we are now in the Biden administration term of office, he has admitted that he is not in favor of oil and has even closed down the Keystone XL Pipeline, costing thousands of jobs already. This is not the time to be proposing to do something counter to that. I can't think of one GOOD reason why this proposed railroad should be considered as a good investment for the future of the Uintah Basin or any of those being impacted economically or environmentally. Please take a step back and consider more than the business aspects of this proposal. There are so many living things and people who will be adversely affected if this proposal comes to fruition.