37-9-1301. Environmental inventory and cleanup after cessation of rail service.

(a) Any rail common carrier having annual carrier operating revenues in excess of ten million dollars ($10,000,000.00), which ceases service on any railroad operating right-of-way in the state of Wyoming, shall comply with the requirements of this section. Within sixty (60) days of the date a rail common carrier ceases service, the carrier shall file with the Wyoming department of environmental quality a report certifying that the operating rights-of-way over which service is ceasing are in compliance with the Wyoming environmental quality laws or providing a plan to bring the operating rights-of-way into compliance. The report shall:

(i) Identify any release, leak, discharge or spill required to be reported under the Wyoming environmental quality laws which the rail carrier knew or should have known occurred on the operating rights-of-way over which service is ceasing;

(ii) Describe remedial action, if any, taken in regard to any such release, leak, discharge or spill reported pursuant to paragraph (a)(i) of this section by the rail carrier and whether such action resulted in the operating rights-of-way complying with the Wyoming environmental quality laws;

(iii) Include, if a release, leak, discharge or spill has occurred on an operating right-of-way, a sufficient number of samples and an analysis of the samples to determine whether or not all such operating rights-of-way are in compliance with the Wyoming environmental quality laws and shall indicate whether materials from any leak, discharge or spill could have entered surface or groundwater. The report shall include an analysis of the actions required to remediate any impact of a leak, discharge or spill and to bring the property into compliance with the Wyoming environmental quality laws.

(iv) Repealed by Laws 1995, ch. 54, § 2.

(b) Within one hundred eighty (180) days of the Wyoming department of environmental quality's receipt of the report required by subsection (a) of this section, the Wyoming department of environmental quality shall review the information contained in the report and may require additional sampling and analysis by the rail common carrier of the operating rights-of-way subject of the report and shall notify the carrier in writing if the report is acceptable or if additional sampling or remediation is needed.

(c) Any rail carrier that is required to perform remediation shall file a progress report with the Wyoming department of environmental quality within one (1) year of the date of notification by the department of environmental quality that the report filed pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, is acceptable. The progress report shall be filed with the department annually thereafter until completion. Should new information be discovered during the period between reports, that information shall be disclosed in the annual report along with appropriate proposed modifications. Such modifications shall be reviewed and approved as provided in subsection (b) of this section.

(d) Repealed by Laws 1995, ch. 54, § 2.

(e) Repealed by Laws 1995, ch. 54, § 2.

(f) Copies of all reports and documentation required by this section shall be filed with the Wyoming department of environmental quality and shall be available to the Wyoming department of transportation, the Wyoming game and fish commission, the Wyoming legislative service office, the offices of the clerks of all counties and the clerks of all municipalities in which service is ceasing.

(g) Any rail carrier which violates any provision of this section shall be liable for a penalty of up to ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) per day for each violation, to be assessed in a civil action.

(h) For purposes of this section:

(i) A rail common carrier "ceases service" when the United States surface transportation board, or any successor agency, finds or has found that the rail common carrier may abandon any part of its railroad lines or discontinue the operation of all rail transportation over any part of its railroad lines, or when the railroad line is actually abandoned or service actually discontinued, if the abandonment or discontinuance is exempt from such a finding under the rules of the surface transportation board, or any successor agency;

(ii) "Operating right-of-way" includes all property and facilities directly relating to the carrier's operation as a rail common carrier;

(iii) "Wyoming environmental quality laws" means the Wyoming Environmental Quality Act (W.S. 35-11-101 through 35-11-1428, as may be amended) and all rules and regulations issued thereunder.