Tongue River Railroad Company, Construction and Operation of the Western Alignment in Rosebud and Big Horn Counties, MT

Résumé

The Surface Transportation Board's Section of Environmental Analysis (SEA) has prepared a Draft Programmatic Agreement (Draft PA) to establish the process for the identification and treatment of historic and cultural resources potentially affected by the construction and operation of Tongue River Railroad Company's (TRRC's) proposed rail line from Miles City to Decker, MT. TRRC's purpose is to provide a shorter and more cost effective route to transport low sulfur, sub-bituminous coal primarily to electric utilities in the mid- western United States. SEA has developed the Draft PA in consultation with the following likely signatories: Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP); Montana State Historic Preservation Office (MT SHPO); Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM); United States Army Corps of Engineers (Corps); United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service (ARS); Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (MT DNRC); and, TRRC. SEA has also consulted with the Northern Cheyenne Indian Tribe as a concurring party. At this time all the likely participants to the Draft PA generally concur with the approach and stipul