Derailments 'too frequent, too dangerous' for Mattagami First Nation councillor

Jennifer Constant has lookedatthe rail lines that cross near her northern Ontario community differently ever since a CN train carrying crude oil jumped the tracks and exploded two years ago.

"It's really opened our eyes to what's going through our territory and the potential of the impacts," said Consant, who is a councillor in Mattagami First Nation, Ont.

"Is there going to be a higher occurrence of health related issues and what not as a result of what's happened?"

Transportation Safety Board investigators will release a report on Thursday about the Feb. 14, 2015 crash.

It was the first of two CN train derailments that happened near Constant's northern Ontario reserve within three weeks.

"That's too frequent," Constant said. "It's too dangerous."

'We need absolute enforcement'

The second derailment on March 7, 2015 occurred just a few kilometres from Gogama, Ont.

Gogama fire chief Mike Benson told CBC he wants Transportation Safety Board investigators to do more than make recommendations.

"I'm hoping whatever they find the cause was that it gets addressed not just through a press conference, but also legally to force CN to change their operations to make them safer," Benson said.

"If these things [derailments] are allowed to happen without serious changes to prevent them, at some point my community is going to be destroyed by a derailment."

Benson is calling for trains to carry lighter loads and slow down more when they travel through residential areas.

"I think that the protection to the communities should be the utmost importance," Benson said.

"We don't need recommendations, we need absolute enforcement and new rules."

CN 'committed' to repairing environmental damage

In an email to CBC News, CN public affairs spokesperson Patrick Waldron wrote his company did an extensive clean up and remediation of the Feb. 14, 2015 derailment site.

Work included the removal and replacement of contaminated soils, wetland restoration and reseeding of vegetation in the surrounding area, according to Waldron.

He added the railroad continues to monitor groundwater at the scene in collaboration with Ontario's Ministry of Environment and Climate Change.

"CN has been committed to repairing the environmental damage caused by the derailment," Waldron wrote.