On April 8, 2015 the United States District Court for the First Circuit (First Circuit) accepted the amicus curiae (or “friend of the court”) brief submitted by Congressman Jim McGovern in March 2015. The accepted brief is in support of the Town of Grafton and its Board of Selectmen’s appeal of the Surface Transportation Board’s (STB) January decision in favor of the Grafton and Upton Railroad (the Railroad).
The STB found that the Railroad’s right to build a proposed propane facility in North Grafton pre-empts state and local zoning and environmental protection laws. If allowed to stand, that decision would pave the way for the construction of a 320,000 gallon propane and transflow facility in a residential zone within the Town’s water supply protection district. McGovern’s brief, filed in support of Grafton’s efforts to stop the construction, refutes the STB’s interpretation of federal law and Congressional intent.
The Town of Grafton appealed the STB decision to the First Circuit in October. Grafton hopes to halt construction of the largest propane facility in the Commonwealth because of its close proximity to homes, the K-2 elementary school, a branch of the public library and little league field. In addition, if allowed to proceed, the facility would be constructed on top of one of the Town’s aquifers.
Also of concern to the Town are the local roadway impacts of the industrial scale trucking operation associated with the facility, since the propane will be transloaded from rail cars onto tanker trucks for distribution. If the Railroad is allowed to move forward, eighteen wheel tanker trucks will travel through residential neighborhoods before reaching MA Route 140.
Congressman McGovern committed to filing an amicus curiae brief at a January community meeting held in Grafton and moderated by State Senator Michael Moore. At that meeting, McGovern vowed to work with the community in any way he could to try to block the development of the facility. “My ultimate concern is safety,” said U.S. Representative Jim McGovern. “As promised, I am actively assisting the Town to ensure that a propane facility of this size is not located inappropriately or unsafely in a residential neighborhood or on a Town aquifer.”
The STB’s decision was based on its finding of preemption under the Interstate Commerce Commission Termination Act of 1995. According to Town Manager Tim McInerney, the STB did no environmental assessment before issuing its decision. “The STB’s conclusion that this facility will not ‘significantly affect the quality of the human environment’ is not only legally flawed but clearly not based in any understanding of the siting of this proposed facility. We are very grateful to Congressman McGovern for his ongoing support of the Town of Grafton as we work to stop this ill-conceived project,” said McInerney.
UPTON DAILY 
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