Bomb trains, PCBs and ‘The Fate of the River’
Still from Bomb Trains, a short film by Jon Bowermaster that will be part of “The Fate of the River” symposium
“Bomb trains” – freight trains carrying millions of gallons of toxic chemicals – run along the shoreline of the Hudson River daily.
“This is the greatest threat to the Hudson I’ve experienced in my entire career,” Scenic Hudson President says in a short film by Jon Bowermaster. “These trains run for almost 50 miles right next to the river, carrying highly explosive crude oil in rail cars that were not designed for this.”
“There’s no benefit,” Sullivan says of the trains running through the area. “Only risk, and the risk can be catastrophic.”
Riverkeeper boat captain John Lipscomb added that there was currently a lack of “ability to respond” if there was a toxic spill from these trains, especially since there are large areas in upper estuary with no roads or ways to access the river. He added that booms to contain toxic spills work in less than 1 knot of current, and the typical ebb and flow in the Hudson River is over 1 knot, “and capture isn’t part of it.”
On top of the threat of trains carrying toxic materials through our communities on the “eroding” west bank of the river, General Electric dumped toxic waste into the Hudson River for over 30 years, and recent clean-up efforts from 2009 and 2015 “did not meet agreed upon environmental benchmarks,” resulting in still-high levels of PCBs in the river.
Bowermaster’s two short films, Bomb Trains, and A Toxic Legacy, about General Electric’s contamination of the Hudson River, will be part of a day-long symposium at Bard College this week.
“The Fate of the River” will take place on Friday, April 11, 2025 from 10am to 4pm in Olin Hall at Bard College. The symposium is free and open to the public. Morning presentations will be followed by an afternoon panel and public discussion. The public discussion is intended to be “informed by science, environmental law, and best citizen advocacy practices to explore how members of the community can effectively address and work together to curtail these threats.”
In addition to writer, filmmaker and adventurer Jon Bowermaster, key speakers will include Associate Director of Government Affairs at Riverkeeper Jeremy Cherson MS ’15, who is working to advance Riverkeeper’s priorities in Albany and Washington; Senior Staff Attorney at Food & Water Watch and Bard faculty member Erin Doran; public health physician and Director of the Institute for Health and the Environment at SUNY Albany David O. Carpenter; and lawyer Florence Murray, whose practice specializes in traumatic brain injuries and wrongful death actions, civil rights violations with severe injuries, trucking collisions, and railroad derailments—such as the one in East Palestine, Ohio in 2023 where 38 freight train cars exploded after derailing.
“The Fate of the River” Symposium Schedule
Friday, April 11, 2025 Olin Hall, Bard College
10:00–10:10am Introduction to “The Fate of the River” symposium
10:10–10:35am Introduction and screening of Jon Bowermaster’s film A Toxic Legacy about General Electric’s contamination of the Hudson/Mahicantuck River
10:40–11am Jeremy Cherson, Associate Director of Government Affairs, Riverkeeper
11:05–11:25am Erin Doran, Faculty in Environmental Law, Bard Center for Environmental Policy, and Senior Staff Attorney, Food & Water Watch
11:35–11:55am David Carpenter, Director of Institute for Health and the Environment, SUNY Albany
Noon–1pm LUNCH BREAK
1:05–1:25pm Eli Dueker, Associate Professor of Environmental and Urban Studies, and Director of Bard Center for Environmental Sciences and Humanities
1:25–1:40pm Introduction to and screening of Jon Bowermaster’s film Bomb Trains
1:45–2:05pm Florence Murray, Partner of Murray & Murray Law Firm, represents stakeholders affected by the toxic aftermath of the 2023 derailment of a Norfolk Southern train in East Palestine, Ohio
2:15–2:35pm COFFEE BREAK
2:40–4pm Panel and Public Discussion: “Next Steps Toward a Healthier River”
https://cce.bard.edu/news/bard-college-hosts-symposium-on-fate-of-the-river-on-april-11-2025-03-31
