Hauser Refueling Facility

The BNSF Hauser Refueling Facility is a rail yard and fueling station located near Rathdrum, Idaho, and is part of the BNSF Railway It was completed in 2004.[1] The facility has several storage tanks and dispenses 250,000 US gallons (950,000 L) of fuel daily as of 2020.[1] The facility also provides routine maintenance and repair services for BNSF locomotives and railcars.[2][1][3] The facility was constructed due to the sparse network of fueling sites in the region before 2000, making it often necessary to sandwich a fuel tender between locomotives.[3]

BN used fuel tenders between specially equipped locomotives in areas that lacked service facilities. BNSF has eliminated this practice with the construction of the Hauser Refueling Facility.[3]

The facility uses various containment structures and automated fuel transit systems to prevent and contain any fuel leaks.[2][1][3] Nonetheless, in December 2004, a wastewater spill occurred at the facility, and small amounts of petroleum-laced wastewater reached the Spokane Aquifer, the sole source of drinking water for 400,000 people in northern Idaho and northeast Washington.[2][1] Preliminary tests showed no immediate threat to drinking water, but Washington state agencies formed a network to monitor the situation and push for more scrutiny of potential sources of contamination.[2][1] BNSF apologized and vowed to take measures to ensure another spill won't happen.[2][1]

Map of the Hauser Refueling Facility

About 32 locomotives are serviced daily in a "quick-stop" process.[3][4] Traffic through the facility declined during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the facility still sees heavy use and is essential to the ability of BNSF freight trains to travel the railroad's vast network in the West.[1]

The concrete fuel pad at Hauser Refueling Facility


See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 HARDY, MADISON (2020-08-16). "Rathdrum's BNSF railroad facility going eco-friendly". Bonner County Daily Bee. Retrieved 2023-03-16.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 bletsiteadmin (2005-01-11). "Washington agencies coordinate response to BNSF spill in Idaho | Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen". Retrieved 2023-03-16.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "BNSF in Idaho". BNSF Northwest. Retrieved 2022-03-12.
  4. ↑ "BNSF's new refueling center in Idaho offers fast service". Billings Gazette. Retrieved 2023-03-16.
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