Warren Buffet, a Democrat Oligarch, is getting his way. Newsom has caved and is giving a Buffett transportation company a lifeline. In doing so, Gavin is admitting that climate change is not a real issue—but political donations are.
“The California Air Resources Board (CARB) derailed its controversial rule that would have likely killed plans for Burlington Northern Santa Fe’s $1.5 billion Barstow International Gateway project.
The air resources board’s rule would have required the use of zero-emissions locomotives in the Golden State starting in 2030.
BNSF Executive Director of Public Affairs Lena Kent in 2024 stated that her company told state officials if the ruling passed, “BNSF would not be able to build this project — finances would not be feasible and we don’t even know how much we’d be able to operate in the state of California.”
If Newsom had insisted on this whacky policy, NO train could come into California—and he knew that when he made the rule. Now that his rich buddy said he would shut down operations, Newsom was forced to see reality. It is the Newsom nonsense vs. the reality of common sense.
California ends zero-emissions train rule that might have nixed BNSF’s Barstow project
Rene Ray De La Cruz, Victorville Daily Press, 1/20/25 https://www.vvdailypress.com/story/news/2025/01/20/california-ends-zero-emissions-train-rule-in-a-win-for-bnsf-project/77767896007/
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) derailed its controversial rule that would have likely killed plans for Burlington Northern Santa Fe’s $1.5 billion Barstow International Gateway project.
The air resources board’s rule would have required the use of zero-emissions locomotives in the Golden State starting in 2030.
BNSF Executive Director of Public Affairs Lena Kent in 2024 stated that her company told state officials if the ruling passed, “BNSF would not be able to build this project — finances would not be feasible and we don’t even know how much we’d be able to operate in the state of California.”
Kent added that although BNSF has been testing out electric locomotives, “We do not have an electric locomotive that works. It’s an impossible task for us to be able to do.”
First District Supervisor Paul Cook took to X to share the announcement and an article by Trains.com that explained how the air board informed the Environmental Protection Agency it withdrew its requests to enforce zero-emissions rules covering semitrucks and locomotives.
CARB’s decision in the final weeks of President Joe Biden’s administration set up a fight over the future of California’s vehicle regulations, Reuters reported.
President Donald Trump has vowed to rescind approvals granted by the EPA to California to require more electric vehicles and tighter vehicle emissions standards.
“Withdrawal is an important step given the uncertainty presented by the incoming administration that previously attacked California’s programs to protect public health and the climate and has said it will continue to oppose those programs,” CARB Chair Liane Randolph said in a statement on Tuesday, Jan. 14.
Because CARB’s regulations are stricter than those imposed on the federal level, the state agency requires waivers from the EPA to enforce them.
CARB is no longer pursuing the waivers for the in-use locomotive rule or regulations that would have phased out diesel-powered trucks, according to Trains.com.
The CARB regulation went into effect in 2024 but was on hold pending EPA approval, according to Trains.com.
The ruling would have banned any locomotive 23 years or older from operating in California. The regulation set dates after which all locomotives with engines built after certain years must operate in a “zero emission configuration.”
Additionally, under the rule, railroads operating in California would have had to begin contributing to a spending account where money would be set aside for the purchase of zero-emission locomotives, Kent stated.
If the ruling had stayed, starting in 2026, both BNSF and Union Pacific would be required to put up to $800 million each year into a fund that CARB would manage and use to purchase electric locomotives, said Kent.
BNSF land deal
The Bureau of Land Management announced Wednesday the approval of a noncompetitive sale of public lands in San Bernardino County to Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, the Daily Press reported.
The nearly 30-acre land purchase will be used for the planned $1.5 billion Barstow International Gateway project located less than a mile west of the city.
Situated on nearly 4,500 acres, the integrated rail facility would transfer goods from international to domestic containers and create roughly 20,000 new jobs while helping to address logistics and supply chain issues.
