Railway ordered to pay tribe $400 million for trespassing with oil trains

Railway ordered to pay tribe $400 million for trespassing with oil trains

A federal judge has ordered BNSF Railway to pay nearly $400 million to the Swinomish Tribe for repeatedly trespassing with oil trains across their reservation.

Gene Johnson reports for The Associated Press.


In short:

  • BNSF Railway intentionally ran 100-car crude oil trains across the Swinomish reservation, violating a 1991 easement limiting trains to 25 cars per day.
  • The tribe sued in 2015, leading to a ruling that BNSF profited significantly from the trespassing, resulting in the large financial judgment.
  • The tribe expects BNSF to appeal the ruling, which includes both profits from the trespassing and additional post-tax profits.

Key quote:

“We know that this is a large amount of money. But that just reflects the enormous wrongful profits that BNSF gained by using the Tribe’s land day after day, week after week, year after year over our objections.”

— Steve Edwards, chairman of the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community

Why this matters:

The Swinomish Tribe, located in Washington State, has long fought to protect its lands and waters from the risks associated with transporting hazardous materials like crude oil. The judge's decision emphasizes the importance of honoring agreements with Native American tribes and the need for companies to respect tribal sovereignty. For the Swinomish, the ruling is a significant victory that will provide much-needed funds to address the environmental impacts and potential risks posed by these unauthorized trains.

A group of white corals on a coral reef.

Record ocean heat drives catastrophic coral bleaching across 84% of reefs worldwide

A global coral bleaching event has now affected over four-fifths of the planet’s reefs, the most extensive damage ever recorded, as ocean temperatures remain historically high.

Isabella O’Malley reports for The Associated Press.

Keep reading...Show less
Sunrise in the woods

Get our Good News newsletter

Get the best positive, solutions-oriented stories we've seen on the intersection of our health and environment, FREE every Tuesday in your inbox. Subscribe here today. Keep the change tomorrow.

A $100 dollar bill encased in an ice block.

EPA chief Lee Zeldin defends freezing $20B in climate grants, citing alleged conflicts

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin on Monday defended his decision to halt $20 billion in climate funding, accusing media and courts of ignoring evidence of misconduct among grant recipients.

Jean Chemnick reports for E&E News.

Keep reading...Show less
A closeup of a white wind turbine against a blue sky.

Trump’s energy chief says clean energy credits waste taxpayer money and worsen the grid

Energy Secretary Chris Wright dismissed clean energy tax credits as ineffective and costly during an Earth Day interview, defending fossil fuels and calling global warming potentially beneficial.

Ashleigh Fields reports for The Hill.

Keep reading...Show less
Diverse group of young people in an auditorium.

Trump administration crackdown halts over 400 NSF research grants tied to equity and studies on misinformation

A wave of cancellations by the National Science Foundation (NSF) has ended hundreds of research grants, many focused on diversity and misinformation, amid a broader push by the Trump administration to reshape federal science funding.

Katrina Miller and Carl Zimmer report for The New York Times.

Keep reading...Show less
The torso of a judge in a black robe holding a gavel on a desk next to a red-covered book.

Judge's sanctions against Michael Mann revive battle over climate defamation case

A Washington, D.C., judge accused climate scientist Michael Mann and his legal team of misconduct during a defamation trial, reigniting a legal fight that has spanned over a decade.

DeSmog reports.

Keep reading...Show less
A neighborhood of burned homes destroyed by a wildfire with hills in background.

Climate disasters are driving up housing costs and displacing low-income residents

A surge in extreme weather events fueled by climate change is amplifying the global housing crisis, pushing prices higher and pushing vulnerable people out of their communities.

Dave Braneck reports for Deutsche Welle.

Keep reading...Show less
Utility towers and power lines stretching into the distance at sunset.
Credit: Joe/Pixabay

Utilities seek legal shield from wildfire lawsuits as climate risks grow

As utilities face growing wildfire liability tied to aging power lines and worsening climate conditions, lawmakers across the U.S. West are weighing whether to protect them from massive lawsuits or leave them on the hook.

Alex Brown reports for Stateline.

Keep reading...Show less
From our Newsroom
Regulators are underestimating health impacts from air pollution: Study

Regulators are underestimating health impacts from air pollution: Study

"The reality is, we are not exposed to one chemical at a time.”

Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro speaks with the state flag and American flag behind him.

Two years into his term, has Gov. Shapiro kept his promises to regulate Pennsylvania’s fracking industry?

A new report assesses the administration’s progress and makes new recommendations

silhouette of people holding hands by a lake at sunset

An open letter from EPA staff to the American public

“We cannot stand by and allow this to happen. We need to hold this administration accountable.”

wildfire retardants being sprayed by plane

New evidence links heavy metal pollution with wildfire retardants

“The chemical black box” that blankets wildfire-impacted areas is increasingly under scrutiny.

People  sitting in an outdoors table working on a big sign.

Op-ed: Why funding for the environmental justice movement must be anti-racist

We must prioritize minority-serving institutions, BIPOC-led organizations and researchers to lead environmental justice efforts.

joe biden

Biden finalizes long-awaited hydrogen tax credits ahead of Trump presidency

Responses to the new rules have been mixed, and environmental advocates worry that Trump could undermine them.

Stay informed: sign up for The Daily Climate newsletter
Top news on climate impacts, solutions, politics, drivers. Delivered to your inbox week days.