June 22, 2006

Letter to the Editor

Rail trail is a valuable wildlife corridor

Editor’s note: according to DPW Director Bill Place, the town has no plans to remove any material from the Rail Trail.. No money can be spent on any such projects without approval of Town Meeting.

The Rail Trail Conversion Advisory Committee (RTCAC) is charged with examining issues related to the conversion of the abandoned rail line in Sudbury to a recreational bicycle path. Five of the nine citizens-at-large who serve on the RTCAC happen to be Friends of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail (FBFRT), a multi-town, pro-trail lobby group. If these members have their way, the Town may be pursuing a multi-million dollar contract with the MassHighway Department to construct a wide, paved bike trail running through the middle of one of the most ecologically sensitive areas in Sudbury. Surprisingly, the RTCAC isn’t the only force actively investigating the development of the wildlife corridor.

At a recent RTCAC meeting, co-chair Dick Williamson reported on a June 1 meeting at the state’s Executive Office of Transportation (EOT). This get together had been instigated by the "Friends" lobby group to discuss the removal of the track through Acton, Concord and Sudbury, and the purchase by the State of the CSX line running from Sudbury into Framingham. Mr. Williamson attended that meeting as an FBFRT representative.

Without consulting all of the RTCAC or pertinent town departments, Sudbury’s Town Manager requested that DPW Director Bill Place, attend the meeting as Sudbury’s representative. FBFRT also invited representatives from Acton and Concord. An engineer from Fay, Spofford and Thorndike (FST), who did the Feasibility Studies for Acton and Concord, and is commencing Sudbury’s Feasibility Study, was also in attendance.

The office of transportation expressed little motivation in removing the tracks and noted the CSX acquisition was a low priority. However, at someone’s suggestion, the EOT agreed to send the Town Manager a lease agreement allowing Sudbury to contract rail removal. Mr. Williamson said this agreement will take place soon and insists such action will bring in revenue to help pay for the bike trail - to pay for a bike trail that the Town may not want or may not find feasible to build!

It was very disturbing and seemingly irresponsible that there was no mention of the repercussions of rail removal. Nor was it demonstrated that such action would truly make enough money for the Town to justify all the consequences. Even the Conservation Commission was uninformed of the FBFRT’s intentions. The cost of removing rails that are surrounded by miles of wetlands has not been determined, nor is it known what liability may be involved with taking on the responsibility of 4.4 miles of corridor that now costs the Town nothing to maintain or patrol.

A majority of the Sudbury rail bed passes through and above sensitive wetlands, near vernal pools, along riparian zones and through the Hop and Pantry Brook resource areas containing priority, rare and endangered species and migratory bird habitat. One would expect that special and costly precautions will be demanded to ensure contaminated soils are not allowed to migrate into these important resource areas. The state acknowledges the presence of carcinogens such as arsenic, fly ash, asbestos and metals in the soils along the track. The ties contain creosote and cannot be disposed of in Massachusetts and due to their weight, are costly to ship out of state.

Any trail conversion, if it takes place, will not happen for years, thus long-term monitoring as well as stabilization of the rail bed to prevent erosion must be employed. Years of rain and snow can release contaminants from loosened material into the surrounding habitat areas, wreaking havoc on wetlands and vernal pools.

What about the liability issues for the town when this area is opened to nuisance use similar to what has happened on the CSX line from Framingham to South Sudbury? Snowmobiles, ATVs, dirt bikes, motorcycles and even cars use this newly created roadway. Bollards placed at road crossings will not prevent vehicles from entering onto the rail bed from the many access points that exist all along the rail line. These four miles will become a patrolman’s nightmare. The police won’t have the time to use bicycles and much of the rail bed will not support cruiser use. ATVs will most likely be used for patrolling, thus further releasing and adding contaminates that could have a devastating impact.

Most residents are probably unaware that this area has become a beautiful, tranquil refuge and an important corridor for wildlife that constant development has squeezed out of former territory. Unfortunately, there is little emphasis being put on this fact. The $25,000 study currently under way will not have the environmental impact or wildlife habitat study advised by the Conservation Commission. At minimum, a wildlife study requires a winter and spring season and the expertise of a conservation biologist.

Where have all the champions of wildlife and wetland resource protection gone? For the greater good, let’s hope they are still here and they, along with those who are concerned with the on-going costs and other impacts of track removal, will say stop to the Town Manager and Selectmen. Let’s know all the details and consequences of track removal and be responsible stewards of the few remaining special resource areas left in Sudbury.

Jim Nigrelli is a member of the Sudbury Citizens for Responsible Land Stewardship