"We're playing Russian roulette that can, one day, lead to a catastrophic tragedy," said Jeff Tittel, director of the New Jersey Sierra Club.
RIDGEFIELD PARK -- Combustible Bakken oil is too dangerous to be transported along Bergen County's aging bridges and rail ways, activists and environmentalists protested on Sunday.
Dozens gathered despite the freezing temperatures to protest along Overpeck Creek, where rail lines run on bridges over the water carrying millions of gallons of the crude oil.
A spokesman for CSX, the owner of the rail lines, said its bridges over Overpeck Creek were last inspected in August and were "found to be safe and suitable for railroad operations at that time," said Rob Doolittle.
Doolittle said the company was in the planning stages of making additional renovations to the bridges, but that the specific changes and timelines of those updates were still undecided.
"It's part of our ongoing investment in our infrastructure," he said.
Jeff Tittel, director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, pointed to the potential of dangerous incidents, such as in Quebec, where a derailment of a train carrying oil -- dubbed a "bomb train" -- resulted in 47 people dying.
"Bakken oil is one of the most dangerous form of chemicals we can put on the rail lines," he said. "We're playing Russian roulette that can, one day, lead to a catastrophic tragedy."
State lawmakers have addressed the issue when they put forth a bill that would make some trains to have contingency plans to transport hazardous materials.
The trains' location over the Overpeck Creek is particular cause for concern, said Harriet Shugarman, founder and executive director of Climate Mama.
"It's a danger to our children, to the air they breathe and to the water they drink," she said.
A nearby bridge was slated to receive more than $4 million in repairs before construction was halted while a debate unfolded in Trenton as to how to put money in the Transportation Trust Fund.
A spokesperson for that bridge's owner, the New York, Susquehanna & Western Railway, didn't immediately return a request for comment. But it should be repaired too, said Paula Rogovin, chairwoman of the Coalition to Ban Unsafe Oil Trains.
The activists jumped around in the freezing temperatures to try to stay warm, standing in the snow that had fallen over the weekend for almost two hours. It was the type of cold weather that makes it more likely for crude oil to ignite, Rogovin said.
If an explosion were to happen, waterways could become contaminated and nearby residents could be injured, Rogovin said.
"This is an accident waiting to happen," Rogovin said. "It's just too dangerous."
Sara Jerde may be reached at sjerde@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SaraJerde.