Portland & Western Railroad (P&W), a wholly owned subsidiary of Genesee & Wyoming Inc., GWI is a leading operator of short line and regional freight railroads in the United States, Canada, Australia, Bolivia, Oriental and Australia. Operations currently include 48 railroads organized in nine regions ((taken from P&W website)
I want to thank Mike Sheehan of Scappoose in giving me a heads up on the actual size of the P&W Railroad. I like many others thought that the P&W was a small little railroad system, and although I did not agree with giving the P&W free monies at the taxpayer's expense to complete their upgrades to the rail system, I was not totally outraged in the give way, thinking that the money would help a local or Oregon rail system and stimulate the local economy, that is until I did a bit of research on the rail road company myself.
I have found that the P&W is a worldwide operation and by no means a tiny little independent railroad, a railroad who by all means can afford to do their own upgrading of the rail tracks. This railroad will be receiving "Connect Oregon" funds (6 million 3 hundred thousand) to repair the rail system to Astoria and also 6 million 9 hundred thousand for the Albany corridor. Plus money from the county and the Port of St. Helens. They will also be receiving funds from FEMA to repair the tracks in Tillamook caused by the floods. If Tillamook County uses Columbia County's rail system and ports to move some of their products, both Tillamook County and Colombia County will be able to receive federal monies. It has something to do with receiving funds for the same thing in a certain time frame, that is why both counties are working together to use the system in a way where both counties and P&W will come out smelling like a rose.
P&W will be receiving about 9 million in taxpayer dollars to improve their rail system and to help with the Port Westward rail system, tax dollars that will come from the pockets of you the taxpayer. The Port of St. Helens has applied for additional monies from Connect Oregon to help pay rail improvements. The list of new awards will be out on the Connect Oregon site approximately June 20^th, 08
When is Columbia County going to quit being the money purse for all industries including rail to come into this county or pass through the county. I believe the pocket books of the taxpayers are pretty much picked clean. Don't you? Remember the REDCO boondoggle? USG was not going to cost the taxpayers anything it was the Golden Goose laying the golden egg, well Rainier is in a financial strain because of the plain and simple stupidity of the REDCO board that brought USG in. Since they capped their tax collection from USG to $300,000.00 instead of collecting the $600,000.00 needed to pay the payment they knowingly caused a $300,00.00 short fall that will be collected from all the taxpayers not just the taxpayers in the REDC district but from all of Columbia County. I wonder if these people run their personal finances as poorly as they have administrated taxpayer funds?
Another project that is interesting is the garbage that is being brought into Columbia County from Hawaii, the loads of garbage will be off loaded at Teven Brothers dock in Rainier, and then transferred on to rail cars and transported to Arlington land fill. Teven Brothers has applied for Connect Oregon dollars, in the past and is applying again. Teven Brothers do hire local people and do pay good wages and benefits, I think if taxpayers dollars are to be spent I think that local business is the way to use the funds. Not international conglomerates. But I disagree with Oregon receiving Hawaii's garbage, so Hawaii can build a Disney world.
Why is Oregon and Columbia County accepting garbage from Hawaii? Don't we have enough problems to deal with, that we need to be the dump for other states? Why did Idaho refuse the garbage? Probably because they are a lot smarter than Columbia County and the state of Oregon, what invasive species will come from Hawaii? They say that they will shrink wrap the garbage to keep any possible cross contamination from occurring if a accident happens, the figures that proponents are putting out is, 1% chance of a contamination spill, sounds low doesn't it? But if you figure the amount of garbage that will be transported that 1% is actually extremely high and not worth risking Oregon's environment, for Disney and Hawaii's financial gain. We are fighting other invasive species in our waterways that is ruining our lakes rivers, aquatic, species and native plants and again our pocket books, must we now contend with the possibility of invasive species in our farm lands/forests and other properties? Here is a question; how can Hawaii afford to transport their garbage across the oceans to Oregon? It does not sound feasible with the cost of fuel. It is time Oregon puts a stop in receiving garbage from other states. Every state needs to be responsible for their garbage and should take appropriate steps in disposing of it in an environmentally sound way.
How much is this garbage project costing the taxpayers in the course of its plan and afterward? I would sure like to know wouldn't you?