EPA orders Norfolk Southern to pay for derailment cleanup

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency yesterday ordered Norfolk Southern Railway to conduct all cleanup actions associated with the Feb. 3 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.

Under the order, the EPA will approve a plan that outlines all steps necessary to address the accident's environmental impacts.

"If the company fails to complete any actions as ordered ... the agency will immediately step in, conduct the necessary work, and then seek to compel Norfolk Southern to pay triple the cost," EPA officials said in a press release.

As part of the legally binding order, NS will be required to:
• identify and clean up contaminated soil and water resources;
• reimburse the EPA for cleaning services to be offered to residents and businesses;
• attend and participate in public meetings at EPA's request and post information online; and
• pay for EPA's costs for work performed under the order.

The Class I has been paying for cleanup activities to date and will continue to do so, NS officials said in a prepared statement.

"We are going to learn from this terrible accident and work with regulators and elected officials to improve railroad safety," they said.

In an interview yesterday on CNBC, NS President and CEO Alan Shaw said he’s visited the derailment site three times since the derailment occurred.

"My commitment to this community is we will continue with the environmental remediation," Shaw said. "We've made a lot of progress, and we're cooperating and coordinating with the Ohio EPA on a long-term remediation plan. We're going to continue our financial assistance to the residents."

So far, NS has reimbursed or committed $6.5 million to the community, Shaw said.

Meanwhile, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro yesterday announced his office has issued a criminal referral in response to the train derailment, which occurred near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border.