UNICOI COUNTY, Tenn. — A federal judge denied a request to halt railroad repair work along the Nolichucky River. CSX, a railroad company, said Helene’s floodwaters destroyed 60 miles of rail line along the river, but there is growing scrutiny over how the company is repairing it.
Two environmental advocacy groups sued, alleging the company is pulling rock directly out of the river and government agencies improperly approved it.
“The Nolichucky is just such a special place for its natural beauty and for the economy and the recreation industry that it supports, so any of those features, if they get destroyed, we won't be able to get that back,” said Erin McCombs, director of southeast conservation for American Rivers.
In court filings, CSX emphasized the economic impact of a 400-mile detour and stated the company is following instructions from government agencies. Those agencies said they have not taken any final action, so there is nothing for the court to review.
Court documents reveal the Army Corps of Engineers told CSX it would allow work to continue and then decide what permits are necessary after the fact, citing the Hurricane Helene emergency.
In agency emails submitted to the court, officials later expressed surprise: “I did not think that ballast/boulders were going to be removed in the wet from the river. This is clearly not a best practice.”
That revelation worries local officials.
“Washington County is still waiting for permission to remove debris from the river, debris that could threaten infrastructure downstream from it, but apparently the railroad can go in and take out actual riverbed,” Washington County, Tennessee commissioner Jodi Jones said.
Jones said she is concerned the rail work could worsen future floods.
After the lawsuit was filed, the Army Corps of Engineers sent a letter to CSX with corrective measures for the project. That includes no longer pulling material from the river, stabilizing the riverbank with erosion control, and taking steps to avoid impacts to endangered species.
“That's a really major step in rebuilding in a responsible way that doesn't put the Nolichucky and the communities that rely on it at risk,” McCombs said.
That change, and a pause in work for Thanksgiving, went into the judge's decision not to order a stop to the work.
