Last week, the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) filed a lawsuit against several federal agencies on behalf of national river conservation nonprofits American Rivers and American Whitewater. The lawsuit claims that the United States Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Forest Service, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are violating multiple federal laws/protections by allowing CSX Transportation to mine the Nolichucky River Gorge in Tennessee.
“We have been pleading with the federal agencies to step in and put protections in place, but they have not acted so far,” Kevin Colburn, American Whitewater’ s national stewardship director, stated in a press release. “CSX’s reckless mining tactics put the remarkable characteristics of the Nolichucky Gorge, and the river itself, at risk. We cannot sit by and simply watch that happen.”
CSX began mining Nolichucky’s riverbed to repair a rail line that Hurricane Helene wiped out in September. The project prompted heavy machinery to be brought into the river gorge, removing materials directly from the riverbed, building bridges that disrupt river flow and fish migration, and putting communities downriver at higher risk of flooding. According to the lawsuit, the nonprofits asked CSX on multiple occasions to use alternative methods like trucking in rock from upland quarries, a standard, less destructive method, but the railroad company continues to ignore their requests.
“We want CSX to be able to quickly rebuild its damaged rail lines, but it needs to do so in a responsible way that follows the law and protects our communities,” stated Patrick Hunter, managing attorney of SELC’s Asheville office. “As we recover from Helene, we need to work together to rebuild resiliently. Instead, CSX is making shortsighted decisions that will worsen flooding problems for people living downstream and do permanent damage to this incredible river.”
According to SELC, the Nolichucky River Gorge is one of the deepest river gorges left in the Southeast bringing in $17 million annually for Unicoi County, Tennessee’s outdoor recreation industry and supporting a diverse ecosystem including bald eagles, brook trout, hellbenders, and species protected under the Endangered Species Act—one of seven acts CSX is in violation of.
“This river, with its clean water and abundant fish and wildlife, is a treasure for everyone who lives in the region,” Erin McCombs, American Rivers’ Southeast conservation director, added in a statement. “It isn’t fair for one company to put its profits above the health of the river and all of the people and businesses who depend on it. We are disappointed that we have to file a lawsuit to protect this place, but it is vital that we rebuild in a way that supports this river and our region’s water wealth. We hope the agencies put measures in place to ensure that we can all continue to benefit from a healthy Nolichucky River for generations to come.”
Cover photo: Nolichucky River in summer. Courtesy of Getty Images.