HARRISBURG – State Rep. Camille “Bud” George, D-74 of Houtzdale, said the State Transportation Committee today approved three rail infrastructure grants totaling more than $2.2 million that are critical to Clearfield County’s economic resurgence.
“The grants will bolster the county’s rail infrastructure and enable key projects to continue to progress,” George said. “This investment helps counter the dismal economic news that people are confronting every day.”
The approved grants are from the state Department of Transportation’s Rail Freight Capital Budget/Transportation Assistance program, authorized by the General Assembly, and Rail Freight Assistance Program.
Local grants approved are:
-$658,000 for BioEnergy International to expand rail capacity at the R.J. Corman Rail Yard at Clearfield Technology Park. The rail service is vital for Bionol Clearfield, Pennsylvania’s first ethanol plant, which will produce 100 million gallons annually of corn ethanol.
-$963,900 for R.J. Corman Railroad Group to repair its Shawville Tunnel, an important link in the rail firm’s 285-mile Clearfield Cluster, which includes about 140 miles of track in Clearfield County. R.J. Corman lines are instrumental to area economic-development projects, including the expansion of the Clearfield Firemen’s Commerce Park, the Clearfield and Curwensville ethanol projects and the massive waste-coal, electric plant planned near Karthaus.
-$630,000 for the River Hill Coal Co. of Kylertown to build 6,000 feet of track servicing its coal mine. River Hill Coal is working closely with River Hill Power to develop a 300-megawatt, waste-coal-fired power plant near Karthaus. About 7,000 rail cars of coal are projected to use the line annually.
“Approval of the grants will ensure many current jobs and many on the horizon,” George said. “I thank the Rendell administration and PennDOT for investing in Clearfield County’s future.”
