Dannemeyer to Seek Amtrak Waste Tanks

Outraged to learn that Amtrak is dumping raw sewage on tracks in his district, Rep. William E. Dannemeyer (R-Fullerton) said Wednesday that he will try to persuade Amtrak to install waste tanks on trains that do not have them.

“I don’t think anybody minded more than a hundred years ago when it mixed with the buffalo waste out there on the prairie, but in urbanized America we will not tolerate it,” Dannemeyer said.

Amtrak officials said earlier this week that its “Desert Wind” train, which runs between Los Angeles and Salt Lake City, probably dumps raw sewage in Orange County and elsewhere along its route. The train is equipped to discharge untreated sewage converted into a clear liquid whenever the train hits speeds of 30 to 35 m.p.h.

Dannemeyer said that while he expects Amtrak officials to say they don’t have the money to add waste tanks to existing trains, he will try to find it in Amtrak’s budget rather than seek new congressional appropriations.

Meanwhile, Rep. C. Christopher Cox (R-Newport Beach) said he and several other congressmen already are sponsoring legislation introduced by Utah lawmakers that would ban Amtrak’s sewage dumping. Similar legislation died in committee last year, Cox said. “It’s hard to imagine why we couldn’t get legislative agreement in short order. . . . I didn’t know that it was happening in Orange County. But now I have a personal interest in flushing this thing out, no pun intended.”

And Rep. Ron Packard (R-Carlsbad), who sits on the House Public Works and Transportation Committee, said he will “pursue whatever action is necessary” to end the practice.

Added Rep. Robert K. Dornan (R-Garden Grove): “I think now that this issue has hit Orange County, you’ll see the front five (the county’s five-member congressional delegation) say, ‘Let’s do something about it.’ . . . The modern world has caught up with the railroads.”

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Lomita), the fifth member of the county’s Washington delegation, could not be reached for comment.

Amtrak officials have estimated that it would cost $300 million to add holding tanks to its older trains. Newer railroad cars, such as those used on Amtrak’s San Diegan trains that run through Orange County, have holding tanks that are pumped out at stations.

The issue first came up locally Monday when Dana W. Reed, a member of the Orange County Transportation Commission, requested that the panel’s staff investigate whether such dumping occurs here. While interested in stopping the practice, Reed was also seeking ways to increase pressure on Amtrak to improve service locally.

Several states, including Florida and Utah, have filed lawsuits against Amtrak over the dumping, and the California Legislature has asked Congress to intervene to ban it.

In the Florida case on Wednesday, a judge refused to grant a mistrial after Amtrak said all of the defense witnesses would invoke the Fifth Amendment protection against self-incrimination.

Circuit Judge Robert Perry gave the defense until this morning to find substitute witnesses. The defense has indicated it may rest its case without calling any witnesses.