HOUSTON – Union Pacific Railroad has announced a collaboration with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and community partners in an agreement to move forward with additional environmental assessment and testing at the former Houston Wood Preserving Works site in Fifth Ward.
The agreement follows decades of complaints from residents wanting Union Pacific to do more to contain and remove creosote contamination at and surrounding the old railyard at Liberty and Lockwood.
Recommended Videos
For years, rail crews cleaned rail ties at the site with creosote, which is a known cancer-causing chemical.
As defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a cancer cluster is a “greater-than-expected number of cancer cases that occurs within a group of people in a geographic area over a period of time.”
A study by the Texas Department of State Health Services found that there were higher rates of lung, esophagus and throat cancer among adults in the area surrounding the railyard, which for decades has been contaminated with creosote, a mixture of hundreds of chemicals used as a preservative. The International Agency for Research on Cancer determined that the chemical is likely carcinogenic to humans.
In January 2021, the state health department reported additional significant findings -- that childhood lymphoblastic leukemia in Houston’s Fifth Ward and Kashmere Gardens communities occurred at a rate five times higher than the national average.
For decades, creosote was dumped at the site, which then was owned by Southern Pacific. Union Pacific did not acquire the property until 1997 as part of a merger.
Residents expressed their fear on lack of cleaning and attention that has allowed for the toxic area to spread. More testing was needed to confirm that.
In conjunction with the EPA, Union Pacific will begin the following series of site activities:
- Soil gas testing and assessment of potential vapor intrusion pathways.
- Soil sampling and testing for dioxins and furans, as a follow-up to recent testing in the nearby neighborhood.
- Additional storm sewer sampling and testing to evaluate potential impacts.
- Work plan development to guide the sampling and testing activities and reduce the potential impacts from this work.
- Extensive community outreach and engagement.
In January, the EPA granted a request from Union Pacific and its community partners to use the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) to enable quicker Union Pacific action. EPA’s use of CERCLA authorizes and allows faster sampling and testing compared to alternative regulatory procedures. All these actions will be paid for by Union Pacific, rather than taxpayers, according to a release.
“Union Pacific takes its environmental obligations seriously and is committed to working with the EPA and community on the site assessment process, including the railroad providing all necessary funding,” said Clint Schelbitzki, assistant vice president – Public Affairs. “The EPA’s order allows us to move as quickly as possible toward solutions and proactively communicate with residents, so they are fully informed as we move forward.”
Since acquiring the property from Southern Pacific Railroad in 1997, Union Pacific completed the following actions:
- Installed over 120 wells at the site and in neighboring Fifth Ward.
- Capped creosote-impacted soil onsite.
- Created an asphalt/concrete barrier to control exposure from underground creosote.
- Excavated soil and built a concrete sidewalk to address the contaminated area between the site boundary and Liberty Road.
- Monitored groundwater and removed creosote from the subsurface.
For more information about the former Houston Wood Preserving Works site, click here.
SEE MORE: