Coal pays, but the costs are hard to figure 



So far, the coal shipped through 

 North Carolina has generated about as 

 much reaction in coastal communities 

 as it has electricity in Europe. But be- 

 tween the cheers and jeers, the ques- 

 tion most often asked is: Will handling 

 coal cost us more than it is worth? 



The answer is unclear. But even so, 

 assistant secretary Clint Abernathy 

 says the State Department of Com- 

 merce is aggressively seeking the coal 

 export industry. 



"We go after any commodity that 

 can be moved through the ports," he 

 says. "The tonnage over the docks 

 helps local economies and brings 

 revenue to the port. In the case of 

 Morehead City, about ten million 

 dollars will go into the local economy 

 this year (1982) because of jobs 

 associated with handling coal." 



But Morehead City mayor Bud 

 Dixon is skeptical. "I can't see how 

 sixty jobs will mean ten million 

 dollars," he says. "There's no question 

 it will help some, but some of the 

 benefits may be offset by decreasing 

 property values and tourist trade." 



Abernathy dismisses the view that 

 increases in coal shipments will spell 

 declines in tourism and fisheries. "We 

 have not been able to identify any real 

 costs," he says. But he adds that the 

 department has not conducted a cost- 

 benefit analysis to determine 

 specifically what the economic trade- 

 offs might be. 



Most of the information available on 

 the costs and benefits of the coal ex- 

 port industry has been compiled dur- 

 ing two studies. One of them, conduc- 

 ted by the state's Department of 

 Natural Resources and Community 

 Development (NRCD), produced a 

 report last October called "Coal Ex- 

 port in North Carolina: A Review of 

 the Issues." The other study is being 

 conducted by the UNC Institute for 

 Transportation Research and Educa- 

 tion, which has prepared a series of 

 comprehensive reports on energy 

 transportation in the coastal area. 

 Together, the reports offer state of- 

 ficials a primer in the brand-new 

 business of coal exports and the 

 problems it poses for North Carolina. 



The reports do list a range of 

 economic benefits the coal industry 

 promises: jobs, new businesses serving 



the export trade, capital investments, 

 and revenue for the ports. But the 

 reports also detail an array of 

 problems, costs and risks. 



As the coal industry develops in 

 North Carolina, the state will be grap- 

 pling with several key issues. Here are 

 some of them, in brief: 



Rail Transportation 



If the coal industry's estimates 

 prove accurate, 50 million tons of coal 

 a year will cross North Carolina by 

 1985. It would take about 35 trips a 

 day, using coal trains 75 cars long, to 

 get the job done. About a dozen of 

 those trips — six in, six out — would 

 pass through Morehead City. And, 

 unless some kind of bypass is built, the 

 trains would tie up traffic at each 

 grade crossing for a total of about an 

 hour and a half each day. The remain- 

 ing trains would travel to 

 Wilmington — about 18 trips a day — 

 and a proposed slurry pipeline site at a 

 yet-undecided location. 



For now, the only way to move coal 

 across the state in quantity is by rail. 

 Can the state's rail system stand up to 

 the test of 50 million tons of coal a 

 year? Here are the weak links: 



— In Morehead City, the state will 

 probably recommend some sort of 

 bypass around the town. But for now, 

 rail planners won't say where a bypass 

 might be constructed. Any such line 

 would almost certainly intersect key 



fishing grounds or nursery areas. "The 

 cost of getting over wetlands is ex- 

 tremely high," says Mark Boggs, a 

 planner who is helping conduct the 

 state's study of coal transportation in 

 the area. "Right now, we don't have 

 any route in mind." 



— In New Bern, gateway to the 

 Morehead City corridor, the single 

 railroad splits Hancock Street and 

 train traffic may endanger some of the 

 town's historic structures. A study 

 funded by the state's Office of Coastal 

 Management is investigating the 

 possible effects of vibration and noise 

 on the historic district, and the results 

 are due this spring. Rail planners point 

 out that a bypass might be possible, 

 though very expensive, around New 

 Bern. 



— Two Southern Railway routes be- 

 tween Raleigh and New Bern both 

 have problems. One passing through 

 Chocowinity serves the Texas Gulf 

 complex at Aurora and regularly han- 

 dles hazardous chemicals. Trains on 

 the line must use a two-mile wooden 

 trestle to cross the Neuse River into 

 New Bern, and neither the track nor 

 the trestle is designed for heavy trains. 

 The alternative route, through 

 Goldsboro, will require rebuilding to 

 accomodate heavy coal-train traffic. 



— Trains headed for the proposed 

 Williams Terminals site would share 



Continued on next page 



Photo courtesy of ITR 



Arendell Street, Morehead City 



