South Queens, NY (May 30, 2023) - Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar (D-AD 38) took up a bill that had languished in the legislature for over 7 years and passed it with unanimous support in the State Assembly. Her landmark bill A4928 will require waste transported by rail to be covered with hard tarping to stop dangerous spillage and the emission of noxious gasses. The Assemblywoman introduced the bill in response to the concerns of her constituents living along the rails. People shared stories of unbearable odors and toxic emissions from waste on trains at all hours. One constituent living along rail tracks revealed he had been diagnosed with lung cancer. Administrators at Christ the King Regional High School reported students unable to concentrate due to headaches and nausea from nearby waste by rail.

Assemblywoman Rajkumar passed the bill with a unanimous 148-0 vote. She had overwhelming bipartisan support. Drawing upon this momentum, State Senator Joseph Addabbo was able to pass the bill in his Chamber soon after. The bill now heads to Governor Kathy Hochul’s desk for her consideration.

During debate on the bill on the Assembly Floor, Assemblywoman Rajkumar exhorted lawmakers of the need to “put a lid on it.” According to the Assemblywoman during the floor debate, “By simply covering rail cars transporting waste, we can prevent noxious fumes and hazardous spills from endangering the people. All we have to do is put a lid on it. It’s time to put a lid on the garbage, to put a lid on the noxious fumes, to put a lid on the hazardous waste. It’s time to put a lid on the destruction of our health, to put a lid on everything destroying our environment. Just put a lid on it: it is common sense. We will save lives and communities with this simple bill.”

The Waste By Rail industry continues to grow exponentially. Waste by rail is a burgeoning method of waste management that has increased 35% since 2020.With the expansion of this industry, rails in the Assemblywoman’s district have become a major thoroughfare for waste from Long Island. This waste is transported long distances upstate to available landfills, often in containers uncovered or covered only by a porous mesh tarp. The waste produces noxious gas, leachate, spilloff, and odors in the neighborhoods surrounding tracks. Sometimes the trains park by homes for hours or days, subjecting residents to unbearable fumes for long periods of time.

Odors and emissions from waste by rail are affecting New Yorkers statewide: in the Saratoga County town of Mechanicville, residents experience “trash train days” where they cannot go outside due to the smell from waste trains idling. Assemblywoman Jennifer Lunsford (D-AD 135), a co-sponsor of Rajkumar’s bill who represents Monroe County, said emissions from waste by rail was the number one complaint from her constituents, with her routinely fielding 50 to 70 complaints per week.

Assemblywoman Jennifer Lunsford said, “I cannot tell you how grateful the people of the 135th District will be to hear of the passage of this bill. It's enormously important and long overdue.”

Assemblywoman Rajkumar’s colleague in a neighboring district in Queens and co-sponsor of the bill, Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi spoke enthusiastically in support of the bill on the floor, noting how it would benefit the Queens community shared by both himself and the Assemblywoman.

Assemblyman Hevesi said on the Assembly floor, “Assemblywoman Rajkumar and I share the same communities, and this has been an ongoing issue for many, many years…this is also going to deal with the biggest issues our constituents complain about. This is an ongoing problem. I am so grateful for the sponsor [Assemblywoman Rajkumar] for her leadership on this. This is a great day for our community.”

Immediately after her floor speech, Assemblywoman Rajkumar said, “As railroads are being used more and more frequently to transport waste, it is essential that we ensure the communities that surround railroad tracks are protected. My legislation will ensure that rail cars carrying waste will be properly covered and that the communities they pass through are no longer exposed to dangerous spills or noxious fumes.”

Significantly, the Speaker of the New York State Assembly Carl Heastie also weighed in: “Every New Yorker deserves to live in a safe and healthy environment. This legislation will ensure that the transportation of waste via rail does not put neighboring communities at risk from leaks, spills or odors and fumes.”

Civics United for Railroad Environmental Solutions (CURES), a local group that has fought for years to end environmental and health hazards caused by rail in the Queens community, applauded the Assemblywoman for her bill.

CURES Chair Mary Parisen Lavelle said, “Since 2008, the railroads have failed to protect New York's residents and environment from rail cars of landfill-bound waste that emit blowoff, leachate, and odors because they don't have hard, solid covers and they have drains in the bottom of the cars. We are very grateful that Assembly Member Jenifer Rajkumar has sponsored a bill that will make railroads completely contain waste inside these rail cars and we very much look forward to seeing this become law.”