George Patton.doc

George Patton, an area farmer, testified that loss of railroad service would hurt agricultural production. He particularly noted that all the malt barley grown on the Camas Prairie goes by rail. The reason for this is that the malting barley houses are only set up to receive rail shipments. In order for farmers to continue to ship malting barley, they would have to truck the grain to a railroad facility and reload. This subsequent handling and transportation may eliminate the market for barley. Tr. at 88-89. Chairman of the Barley Commission, Douglas Scoville, testified there were 670 local grain growers that would be harmed by the abandonment He indicted there was approximately 74,000 tons of barley all moved by rail. He estimated that the loss of rail service would result in barley producers incurring a 5% increase in transportation costs plus additional handling fees. Abandonment would further stress the local economy and adversely affect highway safety and road maintenance. Tr. At 140-42.

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At: CPltrs: GeorgePatton.doc