Big Oil and Mustangs/Ruby Pipeline

Mustangs are federally protected horses and the remnants of the Wild West lore that strikes a chord in most American hearts. They have been a icon of our culture as Americans for hundreds of years and for the most part, have roamed the west in peace. Except in the summer when the federal government comes charging in.

This year Big Oil came riding into the west, with the government in close formation and wants the mustangs out of their way. The Government and its long-standing cozy and corrupt relationship with big business, sealed the horses fate recently with the Bureau of Land Management's roundup of 36,000 mustangs.

The El Paso Corporation's Ruby Pipeline wants to construct it latest line right through the mustang herds and BLM signed off on it, no questions asked. There was another option, an alternate route on land that was already disturbed that did not go through the herds, but it would have cost more.

Well heck fire pardners, ain't no sense cutting into those big ol' profits just 'cause of a few wild horses is there?

BP, one of the shippers of the proposed line, was contacted about this and stated; "Why are you contacting us? We're just a shipper, we aren't building the line." Go away son, you're botherin' me.

BLM rounds them up with helicopters and sends the horses into a panic stampede to drive them to designated areas. Some horses are "run" this way for eight miles in 90 degree weather. Foals have run their hooves off, mares have aborted their foals from the exertion and many others have dropped dead of exhaustion or become so lame they had to be shot.

The horses are housed in "government holding pens" and are dying of dehydration at an alarming rate. 11,000 of them are penned up "butt to butt."

BLM came down off the fence and declared they "were the Bureau of Land Management, not the Bureau of Wildlife, not the Bureau of Horses." BLM advances one of the reasons they are rounding them up is due to overcrowding, starvation and sickness. The horses come in without any of those alleged physical conditions, if they make it through the terror roundup unscathed which many do not, and decline rapidly once the government pens them up.

Terror on the high plains all in the name of profit for big business.

They are conducting the summer roundups this year without allowing any public access to the operation, nor are they allowing any other oversight or scrutiny of most of the horses when they arrive at the selected government holding areas. In the past, BLM has allowed "visitor's days" to potential adopters and oversight of the roundups by animal rights groups.

T. Boone Pickens' wife, Madeline Pickens, came forward to take responsibility for the horses, 30,000 left (6000 have died) and purchase the land for an eco-sanctuary from the Dept. of the Interior (that's Ken Salazar.) First, they liked the idea and then they balked at it. No reason given, other than a flat out refusal from Salazar. His department is using excuse after excuse to not do anything sensible on this issue or anything else the DOI has their hands in.

The government has plans to go after 6000 more soon, they must see a need to replace what they have killed so far having some perverted reason we do not begin to understand.

But there is one more player in this story; the cattle ranchers. They are a powerful lobbying group and they don't want competition for grazing land from the mustangs. Never mind who was there first, just get those mustangs off the land so we can make more money Washington or you will feel our horns.

It is corrupt, barbaric and torturous. It is also against the law, but when you make the laws, you don't have to follow them yourself, just make sure everybody else does and don't upset your big donors and lobbyists. Do as I say, not as I do.

When big oil and big beef says run the government starts hoofing it.
TakeActionR.O.A.M.Act 
TellObamaNoMoreSummerRoundups 

 

Vincent Town Council Approves Zoning Request For Quarry

(click title for story)
They did just what we thought they would and approved the zoning ordinance for the quarry.

It was tense and heated between the Mayor, the City Council members and the lone Council member who was in opposition to the project.

One Council member channeled Martin Luther King as a basis for what she was about to do against her district's wishes. Another read a statement to cover himself from a conflict of interest so he could vote for the quarry.

The Town of Vincent was sold today and the behavior of the Mayor and the Council in public was painful to watch. They have become as bold and brazen as the bad company they have been keeping since 2007.

Opposition members vow it is not over and we believe them. Should be interesting to see what happens next.
BirminghamNewsStoryWithVideoVincentQuarry 

(**Update) 
The following is part of a comment section in the local news media, printed as is with mispellings:
The Vincent town council denostrates the way any town council should operate. The majority of the group is very professional and it's a great feeling to know they have the best interests of the town at heart, regardless of what several bumbling idiots tried to accomplish. 

*Another separate retort from this same commenter that was removed but we have it for you:
(Idiots or dumbasses either is correct. Get a life! Get a hobby.)

As for the 2-1 numbers at the council meetings that supposedly was a "display" of the people "for and against" the Quarry, taking time to show up and have the ablility to control nothing that happens there shows complete ignorance. 

Numerous instances of the Vincent Town Council not operating as a Town Council who is "professional" and "having the best interests of the town at heart" have been proven and those claims are soundly negated. They are the antithesis of professionalism and a citizen responsive government. Could be that those comments are "self congratulatory" in their nature and quite possibly could be coming from one who is desirous of such.


Demonstrating against that which you think is unjust is an integral part of our Constitutional rights which have been vigorously exercised by Americans throughout our history; it is freedom personified. Only a "complete ignoramus" and would suggest that citizens "don't bother" if it is "beyond their control" simply because they are citizens and not elected officials. The author seems to imply that government be allowed to operate in a vacuum and with dictatorial power. Sounds like an insider to us because that is precisely the structure and attitude of Vincent City Hall.

 

Houses, Horses and Mines in Marion County, Florida

From the "Sinkhole Damage Blog" of Morgan Barfield, Esquire;

"While sinkhole activity and sinkhole damage has been associated more with the Hernando, Pasco, and Pinellas counties, Marion County is experiencing a considerable increase in the number of sinkhole claims. While the ultimate source of this increase is unknown, it is fair to assume it can be attributed in part to the increased awareness and concerns of the Marion County residents. Recently, a homeowner whose house required one of the most expensive repairs we have seen as property sinkhole insurance lawyers. In the recent past, Marion County and Hernando County both made headlines when homeowners lost entire sections of their house due to sinkhole collapse, luckily while no one was at home."
#         #          #

"The ultimate source of this increase is unknown." Interesting that this is their position. Do they really not know or is it a case of we don't want to upset any of our other lawyer friends and business clients by acknowledging this county is considering it's 17th limestone quarry? No, that must not be it, because he did say, "it is fair to assume that it can be attributed in part to the increased awareness and concerns of Marion residents." Aspirin, please.

___________________________________________

More from the SD Blog:

I live in Ocala, and there seem to be a lot more sinkholes than there were a few years ago. Is it my imagination?

"No, it’s not just you. Recently we have seen a dramatic increase in sinkhole claims reported in the Ocala area. The homeowners we speak to are often shocked to learn that sinkhole activity is so prevalent in their surrounding area. 

In one recent case we have come across what, in our experience, is one of the largest sinkholes we have ever seen at a residential property, and it is right in the heart of Ocala. This particular home took nearly five times the grout most homes with sinkhole damage typically will. After the grouting, data indicates that the home’s foundation still remains nearly three and a half inches off level. Unfortunately, the insurance company does not think any more repairs are necessary."

_______________________________________________

Florida HB 1447 was introduced earlier this year by Representative Bryan Nelson (an insurance company insider, surprise) to "reduce consumer insurance fraud," but what it really does is gut sinkhole insurance. South Florida rock miners are on the move seeking new ground since the 404 permitting is becoming a little more difficult. If  HB 1447 goes through and becomes law, it will be even more challenging for homeowners who live in the new mining target zones such as Marion County.

Now the horses are caught in the crossfire of mining interests vs Ocala's rich pastureland.
(More on that below in the "Opposition Group Scrambles to Pay Legal Fees")

MarionCountyConsideringAdding17thLimestoneQuarry

Ocala.com March 23, 2010

Bill Thompson

(Excerpt):

"Lawmakers listened"

The Legislature subsequently declared in law that mining limerock and other aggregate materials "was a strategic and critical need" and that "a disruption of the supply would cause a significant detriment to the state's construction industry, transportation system, and overall health, safety, and welfare."

To that end, lawmakers deemed new limerock mines qualified for "expedited permitting" and that any hearing on any applications that are challenged must be conducted within 30 days after a party filed for such a hearing.

It was this legal language that Steve Gray, CB Three LLC's lawyer, referred to last month in encouraging the magistrate to recommend that the County Commission approve his client's permit.

This requirement, he wrote, makes the magistrate "seriously consider proposed approval conditions which when imposed would minimize the impact of approval of the mining on adjacent and nearby property owners."

But some question whether such urgency exists.

Jason Willett, a crushed stone commodity specialist with the U.S. Geological Survey, notes that limerock production fell by almost half in just two years.

Output in Florida dropped from a peak of 124 million tons in 2006 - the year surveyed by the authors of that FDOT report - to 65.8 million tons in 2008.

"Nationally, production is down to 1990 levels," Willett said in an interview, noting that some mines around the country are closing because of slack demand.

"In Florida and everywhere else, less mining is needed. If demand was still high, they would have to get the resource somewhere else. But we'll need years of [economic] recovery to get back where we were and we won't need new mines until we get back to that level."

#                    #                      # 

If this story is true, and Mr. Willett's assessment is accurate regarding demand, then why do we need another quarry in Shelby County when there are presently already 5 of them operating here? Where is this limestone going if demand is down? Who is White Rock Quarries Vincent Hills mine going to be supplying? The Northern Beltline in Jefferson County or perhaps the proposed elevated Highway 280 project? Has Vecellio, the parent company of WRQ, bid on either project?

And the most important question, yet simpliest of all, which is certainly obvious given all the information here; Does Vincent, Alabama need this quarry?

So many questions and very few answers, but a Marion 8200 full of possibilities and suspicions.

Let's go back to Marion County and see how this all turned out.

Ocala Star-Banner May 19, 2010

Bill Thompson

(Excerpt):

May 19--Opponents of a lime rock quarry proposed for northwest Marion County turned out in force Tuesday night to deliver a simple message to the County Commission: They weren't coming to the mine; the mine was coming to them -- and they were saying no thanks.

The commission agreed -- unanimously.

Commissioners ruled that the mine did not fit with the character of the community. They sided with neighbors who had expressed concerns about their peace and quiet, their drinking water, their roads and their livestock.

On Tuesday, residents returned with many of those same concerns, with more than 30 of them urging the board to stand by its initial vote. They also asked the board to not lose sight of the people who must live next to the site, and at one point they even counted a lime rock miner as an ally.

"Believe me, we don't need polka dot mines all over this community. They're not nice to live next to," said Ocala businessman Whit Palmer, whose company operated a 700-plus acre mine near Reddick.

Gray, the quarry lawyer, said there would be a larger buffer around the property boundary than was initially proposed, and that would be installed before any mining took place.

He added that greater efforts would be made to control dust.

The presentation also included a blasting expert who told the board that the effect on homes from explosions would be "nil" and that nearby wells would be safe.

David Theriaque, a Tallahassee lawyer representing four neighbors fighting the mine, said the issue was not damage to structures but to people's emotional well being. He called it "inconceivable" that the neighbors' quality of life people would not be affected by blasting, not to mention truck traffic, dust clouds, lighting, heavy equipment noise and so on.

"They're not making a choice to live next to the mine." he said. "If they were, they would forfeit their right to complain."

"You adopted a policy that said mines and people don't mix, that mines and horses don't mix, and the flip side of that is that you don't put a new mine next to people. You don't put houses and people and horses and mines together." Theriaque said.

CommissionRejectsMineMay19,2010

It's not over yet for this community. True to form, the miners are pushing back and attempting to break the opposition by wearing them down financially:
OppositionGroupScramblesToPayLegalFees
Ocala.com June 30, 2010
Bill Thompson
(Excerpt):

"The bills climbed because the defense of the county's decision, which was supplied solely by the mining opponents, grew increasingly complex with time and because of heightened involvement in the proceeding created by concerns about the coziness of the relationship among Bice, Fowler and the quarry company's lawyer, Steve Gray."

(Bice is an Ocala Attorney involved in the environmental issues of the quarry and obviously pro mining in her thinking from the story.)

"Activists also are hoping the public might help support them, either by learning of their story on the Internet at their website, farm1.wordpress.com, or in soon-to-appear articles in the thoroughbred industry's trade publications.

"It eats a hole in my gut that we owe [Theriaque] this money," Frenung said. "I'm the kind of person who keeps beating the bushes and hopes something falls out. But short of some benefactor coming forward to carry the ball from this point forward, I don't know where we go from here."

But she seems to fear more what might happen if the company prevails.

"It could have a huge impact on the thoroughbred industry," she added. "I'm worried it could set a precedent and I shudder at what might happen."

The activists welcome donations.

Anyone willing to help can make checks out to the firm of Theriaque and Spain and submit them care of Frenung's attorney, Larry Collins, at 4326 N.E. County Road 329, Anthony FL, 32617.

(Kudos to Mr. Thompson for his excellent reporting on this issue!)

#              #                #

The ground work is being laid for a war against the horse farms and the potential contamination to the groundwater they appear to being set up to be blamed for. Note that sinkholes are referenced as the points of potential contamination entry.  It is always something else that causes the water problems other than the obvious culprit; the rock miners creating the increase in sinkholes from massive groundwater withdrawals.

Ocala is going to have to decide between the horses and the rock miners; the two cannot continue to exist harmoniously as they may have been able to in the distant past, before heightened urbanization and the growing appetite for destruction of the mining industry.

We're pulling for the horses in this battle. Just as we are pulling for livestock and farming interests in Vincent, Alabama that are threatened by the WRQ quarry.

MarionCountyExtensionBMPsHorseFarms

Ocala Horse Farm Sinkhole FLGS

 

Bentley Wins Nomination for Governor

 *Updated--boy were we wrong about Bentley!

Has a change finally arrived on the Alabama political scene where voters are turning away from corporate and special interests candidates to more Populist ones? 

The lesser of two evils was Bentley in Alabama's republican primary run-off Tuesday July 13, 2010. His opponent, Bradley Byrne, was heavily contributed to by BARD members, PACS run by Stephen Bradley, corporate interests and the usual big business and big polluter crowd.

Byrne, a lawyer and the high-priced candidate who raised millions in campaign cash, could only bring in 44% of Alabama's vote. We would guess Governor Riley's endorsement of Byrne did little to help him and that may be the only positive thing we can say for Ol' Bingo Bob Riley.

From the story:

"Byrne, the state's former two-year college chancellor, ran with the support of top Republican officeholders, including Gov. Bob Riley, and with strong financial support from business groups."

"Considered the front-runner through much of the campaign, Byrne reported raising nearly $7 million with  generous support from the same business groups that helped elect Riley."

Shelby County results:

Governor

Robert Bentley — 13303

Bradley Byrne — 12319

Commissioner of Agriculture

Dorman Grace — 13748

John McMillan — 9735

In the close race for Agricultural Commissioner, 52%--48%, John McMillan prevailed statewide over the former Alabama Surface Mining Commission president, Dorman Grace, whose campaign image was one of a simple farmer and small business owner. Shelby County clearly went for Grace, and his local  "from the back of my pickup truck" campaigning,  probably resonated strongly here with folks who were not aware of his other "interests."

You cannot be a creditable advocate for farming and have such deep-seated ties to mining; the two are diametrically opposed to each other, particularly in this state, whose rich farmland is unceasingly "under the big shovel" from mining interests.

Alabama made the right choice in these two races and Populism prevailed, a rare animal in Alabama politics, but November is still on the horizon and we will have to wait and see if a turning point has finally arrived in this state of pervasive corporate culture or it's just another one trick pony show as usual.

MontgomeryIndependentEditorialWeErredInEndorsingByrne 

HuntsvilleTimesEditorialCrossoverVotingInGOPRunOff 

 

Former Alabama AG Bill Pryor Opinion on Public Participation in Open Meetings

County Commissions-Public Meetings--Rules Of Order
An individual can express his or her views on matters at a meeting of a County Commission. The County Commission can promulgate reasonable guidelines regarding public participation at it's meetings.

Question 1:

May the chairman of the Limestone County Commission refuse to allow a particular citizen or citizens to address the Commission during it's regularly scheduled meetings, because the Chairman may be opposed to the subjects and/or issues which the citizen(s) may bring up, or because the Chairman may personally dislike that citizen(s)?

If other citizens are indeed allowed to address the Commission during the allotted time for public comments, can the Chairman rule that one or two specific citizens are indefinitely ineligible to speak?

Answer:

When a board sits in Public Meetings to conduct public business and hear the views of citizens, it may not discriminate between speakers on the basis of their employment or the content of their speech. The right of the public to be present at meetings of a public body includes the right to share their views on the matter before the body, (see reasonable guidelines above, that is key to the discussion to follow.) Reasonable time, place and manner regulations are permissible, and any content-based restriction must be narrowly promulgated to effectuate a compelling state interest.

April 1998 letter excerpt from AG Bill Pryor on the same issue:

"A public body has the right to determine whether public comments will be allowed, except in those cases where the law requires a public hearing.  While the law does not mention public participation at meetings of a public body, it is good public policy to allow citizens and taxpayers to express their views within guidelines and restrictions established by that body."

 #           #             #


We used the above excerpts in prefacing this post to make a point; despite the fact that the Alabama laws do not specifically address public participation, the Sunshine Law (Open Meetings Act) was designed to encourage, not prohibit, public participation. Its other purpose was to improve transparency of government.


The problem lies in the lack of clear delineations in the Sunshine Law and that it leaves much discretion to local governments. On one hand, that is a good thing as it allows municipalities to establish their own criteria to enhance the efficiency of their public meetings. On the other, it is abused and utilized as a tool to dissuade public participation and limit discussion.

Case in point:

Last Tuesday, the Vincent City Council was scheduled to have their monthly meeting, which was preceded by a non-public workshop in which they were to decide where to have the meeting. If that sounds confusing to the reader, it was to the citizens as well. This was highly unusual and disorganized, in addition to being illegal.


The law states that there must be a vote in public by all council members to change the location of any regularly scheduled meeting. That fact was pointed out to the Mayor the Friday before this meeting by Council person Ralph Kimble. The response from the Mayor was "We can't cancel the meeting." Even though the Mayor was informed that the Tuesday meeting was illegal, he was unwilling to cancel it and follow state law.


On that following Tuesday, after the non-public workshop and some pressure from the citizens, the Mayor came out and told the media that they were going to cancel the scheduled City Cancel meeting. He stated that; "We accidentally forgot to vote on the meeting change."


He did not forget, he was attempting to break the law and rush through a zoning ordinance and take a final vote on the controversial quarry proposed for Vincent. Because he had been told the preceding Friday that there was a violation of the law, he cannot come out the following Tuesday and attempt to spin the situation.


When this meeting was canceled on Tuesday, there was no rescheduled time given. The cut off time to sign up to address the council at meetings is Wednesday @ 4:30. Late Wednesday afternoon, in the local county newspaper, a story was placed that stated the meeting had been rescheduled. That alone left very little time for any citizen to make the deadline to sign up to speak.


Upon closer reading of the news item, the rescheduled meeting had morphed from a City Council meeting, which it originally was, into a "special meeting." The ordinances of Vincent's meeting regulations for "special meetings" do not allow for any public comment.


The intent of the Vincent City Council is very clear; they did not and do not want any more public comment or public participation. This latest maneuver, though it may not be illegal, is without question a violation of the spirit of the Open Meetings Act.

 

EPA June 2010 Report Concerning Environmental Injustice Allegations Region 4

(click title for web cache html version of file report)

From the report, Office of Inspector General recommendations: 

We made four recommendations to EPA to address these issues. We recommended that EPA:
(1) require program and regional offices to determine where environmental justice reviews are needed and establish a plan to complete them; 
(2) ensure that environmental justice reviews determine whether EPA programs, policies, and activities may have a disproportionately high and adverse health or environmental impact on minority and low-income populations; 
(3) develop specific environmental justice review guidance that includes protocols, a framework, or directions; and 
(4) designate a responsible office to compile the results of environmental justice reviews and make recommendations to EPA senior leadership. 

EPA agreed with our recommendations and established milestones for completing those actions.

In January 2008, EPA reported completing each corrective action in response to the recommendations. Corrective actions included the creation of guidance for conducting environmental justice reviews and the formation of a workgroup representing programs and regions to develop environmental justice action plans.

In our 2004 review, we reported on how EPA was integrating environmental justice into its operations.

We concluded that EPA had not fully implemented the Executive Order and was not consistently integrating environmental justice into its day-to-day operations at that time. We found that EPA had not identified minority and low-income communities or defined the term “disproportionately impacted.” 

Moreover, in 2001, EPA restated its commitment to environmental justice in a manner that did not emphasize minority and low-income populations, which we believed was the intent of the Order. 

In the absence of environmental justice definitions, criteria, or standards from EPA, many regional and program offices individually took steps to implement environmental justice policies. The result was inconsistency in determining environmental justice communities across EPA regions and programs. Thus, the implementation of environmental justice actions was dependent, in part, on where a person lived.

We made 12 recommendations to EPA to address the issues we raised.
Four key recommendations were:
(1) reaffirm the Executive Order as a priority; 
(2) establish specific timeframes for developing definitions, goals, and measurements; 
(3) develop a comprehensive strategic plan; and 
(4) determine if adequate resources are being applied to implement environmental justice. 

EPA disagreed with 11 of the 12 recommendations.

EPA did agree to perform a comprehensive study of program and regional offices’ funding and staffing for environmental justice to ensure that adequate resources are available to fully implement its environmental justice plans. In May 2004, EPA issued its report, Environmental Justice Program Comprehensive Management Study, conducted by a contractor.


Conclusion
Executive Order 12898 directs federal agencies to make achieving environmental justice part of its mission to the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law. The Executive Order states that it is intended only to improve the internal management of the executive branch and is not intended to, nor does it create any right, benefit, or trust responsibility, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or equity by a party against the United States, its agencies, its officers, or any person. Consequently there are no enforcement provisions for environmental justice guidelines.
#          #          #

EPA closed the investigations into the Dickson, Tennessee landfill, Perry County, Alabama coal ash dump site, Chemical mercury contamination Mcintosh, Alabama and the Kingston Valley Tennessee coal ash spill (the wastes are what is going to Perry County), among others.


HoltStory,Dickson,Tennesee-PeopleMagazine-05-14-07.pdf

Mobile,AlabamaPressRegisterSpecialReportOlinCorporation 

TVACoalAshWasteToPerryCountyAlabamaAnEconomicDecision 

TVA_Kingston_Fossil_Plant_coal_ash_spill 

"EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson has made environmental justice one of her top seven  priorities and has created an office to promote environmental justice for affected groups and communities throughout the United States. Environmental justice is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin or income with respect to the development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations and policies."

This report seems to stand on the EPA not committing wrongdoing in these complaints because they were not involved with the sites. It also states, in a few of them, that the state environmental agencies are handling the problems and what they will do to improve their monitoring and compliance. Fine, just continue to let the fox guard the proverbial hen house.

There are far too many instances of the huge problems with state agencies who are more or less in it for the permitting fees, revenue from fines and even revenue from the operations in most landfills among other "conflicts of interest" in these agencies.

ADEM is notorious for its close ties to big business, which is why the EPA has been petitioned to remove ADEMs water control. The jury is still out on that legal action, but we do not hold out much hope it will succeed if Region 4's history is our guide.

In short, they seem to operate more in conjunction with the polluters and than in upholding environmental regulations and environmental justice for the citizens who need it the most.

Texas is a prime example of what can change when the regional EPA systems say "enough" and come in and take over the process. Though that victory in Texas may not hold for long, it has already had reverberating effects for the better in the interest of the citizens and their environment:

More great reporting from the Texas Observer's Forrest Wilder
CementKilnsGoDownExxonMobilSuedJuly7,2010

Until pressure is put on Region 4 from Washington, the citizens of Alabama will never be able to celebrate a victory such as the one recently won in Texas.

It is long overdue that the EPA takes control of some of ADEMs authority, if not all of it, because they refuse to do their true job and act as environmental managers. Instead, similar to the US Army Corps of Engineers, they have become the enablers for big business.

But, if Region 4 does decide to finally act in the interest of the environment and the public good, that tiger will have to have teeth and not be made of paper.

 

Tampa Sinkhole Swallows Car July 11, 2010 Concerns Growing....

(click title for story)
Seismic monitoring equipment can only predict so much.
WRQ is misleading the public when they say that the monitoring equipment will be the safeguard in any instance of cover collapse sinkholes.

The very nature of these types of sinkholes is quite sudden; they can occur in seconds to a few minutes.

How realistic is it to evacuate an area with that little time?

The Tampa residents were lucky and they did have enough time to get out, but in Tennessee earlier this year, the 1-24 sinkhole almost claimed an eighteen-wheeler driver and 2-3 other motorists. Only the quick action of  TDOT employee in the area prevented a tragedy.

6 months ago also in Hillsborough County:
SinkholesOpenUpInPolkandHillsboroughCountiesNeighbornoodEvacuated

Sinkhole swallows Plant City house

Today was supposed to be a good day for Nancy Regan of Plant City.

Unemployed since October, she finally got the call this morning to return to work.

She didn't make it. 

Ten minutes after taking that call, Regan and her boyfriend found themselves escaping through a back bedroom window as the ground swallowed up their home.

**Note--Plant City, Florida was the area of hot debate over the high number of sinkholes that formed after strawberry farmers instituted massive groundwater withdrawals in an effort to save their crops from freezing.

Question--What is a standard practice of quarries?

Answer--Massive dewatering from groundwater withdrawals.

 

A Tale of Two Cities

As we all know in this area, Shelby County, Alabama has taken over the Comprehensive Planning for most of the county, the smaller cities in particular. The Comprehensive Plan structure and objectives that have been drawn up by Columbiana are freedom-robbing and property devaluing unless you live in the "designated city circles" this plan outlines. 75% of the population and business has to occur within the "circles." The remaining 25% outside of this sees their property devalued and discouragement of any business located in this smaller percentage zone.

These types of plans are being adopted in other states, and parts of South Carolina have realized what this really means only after some of their counties went ahead with these plans. As the old saying goes, it is hard to unring a bell, but some counties are working to undo them.

They tout these plans as "green infrastructure plans," but what they really do is restrict property rights and economic freedoms and give far too much power to the county seats, along with a lion's share of the revenue from business.

In 2007, former Vincent Mayor Terry Allen turned over all of Vincent's planning to Columbiana, which meant nothing would happen in Vincent without the approval of Shelby County. That was a bad move for the citizens and the town, but perfect for what Columbiana had in mind for Vincent; a massive quarry and the transforming of the rural town into a heavy industrial zone.

Mr. Allen knew this, everyone in Vincent Town Hall and Shelby County knew this; the citizens did not. They were purposefully kept in the dark until the dastardly plan was well in place. The quarry had acquired almost all of its land purchases by the time the news broke. The current Mayor, Ray McAllister, admitted in a press conference which was also quoted by the local newspaper that "The quarry reps asked for me for more time to get things in place before the news went public."

This was after almost all of Town Hall had slipped over to Childersburg for a day long series of secret meetings with the quarry reps on March 31, 2009. They were all asked to sign confidentiality agreements and have since tried to deny this in the local press. Almost all of them. Council person Smith refused to answer the reporter's questions, and Council person Reynolds feigned ignorance about them. 

(See the "What Did They Have To Hide" link to the right.)

We just recently read the Wilsonville Comprehensive Plan, "A Place To Call Home"  which was put together by Kristen Goddard Planner II of Shelby County. She has also been the county planner for the quarry and is on such good terms with WRQ President Jim Hurley, that she affectionately refers to him as Jim, usually with a lilt in her voice when doing so.  It's really very cozy in appearance and angers Vincent citizens to no end to see them so friendly with each other. As well it should.

In a recent letter to the McCrimmon Farm, covered previously on this blog, Mr. Hurley states that the planners working on this quarry project are "my planners." We just bet they are, never mind they are employed by the county, WRQ seems to own everybody involved in this.

Shelby County had to lay off some planners due to the housing crisis gripping the nation (this comes from an inside source), something they have not done in years. Ms. Goddard is probably very eager to keep her job and even more eager to do what she is told to do, despite the fact that her actions are contributing to the destruction of a town and a way of life for a large segment of minority residents.

Wilsonville is closer to Columbiana and predominantly a white city. They get to have a Marina development on Lay Lake, a "Mayberry-style town with support to their existing rural agricultural endeavors" and the saving of their "green, rolling hills the residents have grown to cherish."

Yep, that is all in the Wilsonville Comprehensive Plan.

What does Vincent get? How about Harpersville which has a prime location right on Highway 280 to become a wonderful, thriving city itself?  Too bad they are sitting on so much limestone, but wait a minute, so is Wilsonville. Why is there such a contrast in plans between these small, rural cities?

One need only look to Columbiana and their unending greed, seemingly thinly-veiled racism and intolerance for socioeconomically depressed people to find the answer.

 

Alabama Department of Health Fish Advisory 2008 (still current for 2010)

Coosa River – St. Clair, Talladega counties

Between Riverside and Logan Martin Dam

Contaminant – PCBs
Do not consume striped bass

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Coosa River – Shelby, St. Clair, Talladega counties

Between Logan Martin Dam and the railroad tracks crossing the Coosa near Vincent

Contaminant - PCBs
Do not consume striped bass

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Coosa River – Chilton, Coosa, Shelby, St. Clair, Talladega counties

Lay Lake between Logan Martin Dam and Lay Dam

Contaminant - PCBs
Do not consume striped bass

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Coosa River – St. Clair County

In upper Lay Reservoir approximately two miles downstream of Logan Martin Dam and one half mile downstream from the Kelly Creek - Coosa River Confluence in the vicinity of Ratcliff/Elliott Island.

Contaminant - PCBs

Limited consumption of spotted bass

The PCBs are insoluble and will remain on the Coosa River bed for a very long time.How did they get there? From the Solutia Pharmaceutical plant (part of Monsanto) and a client of Stephen Bradley's.

This is a dangerous contaminant considered to be carcinogenic. Mercury and arsenic are the other two main toxic pollutants in this river and their levels do fluctuate, but the PCBs remain constant and confined to the bottom, that is until something stirs up the river bed.

We can think of one thing that might; the deep excavation by Vincent Hills which will increase the gradient of groundwater flow towards the quarry. From there, the PCBs will be pulled all throughout the groundwater conduits. Vincent's groundwater recharge is tied to the Spring Creek tributary of the Coosa River, which in turn ties the river to our groundwater.

WRQ Reps, the Town of Vincent and Shelby County continue to ignore this concern and dismiss it as an impossibility. In fact, WRQ Reps are now claiming, "nothing will happen to the water."  If that is true, then why make temporary emergency plans to provide an alternate water source in the event the quarry interrupts the water supply? Why tell the Town of Vincent that they will have to bear the cost of a water treatment facility?

In Shelby County's other two cities where mining is taking place, Calera and Alabaster, both towns have lost their water and/or seen it contaminated by the mining companies. But, we are to believe it will not happen in Vincent from the same type of industry?

The WRQ Reps Fowler and Bradley, are disingenuous in their claims and misleading the greedy Vincent and Shelby County officials who only care about getting their hands on the revenues from this operation. They could care less about their citizens or anyone else for that matter. They have demonstrated that time and again with their arrogant behavior towards their citizens and anything that opposes what the WRQ Reps claim.

The lack of any willingness to have an independent Environmental Assessment study done, which would illuminate not only any potential environmental issues, but also the social and economic impacts that are inherent with this quarry, prove the "inside baseball" going on here.

If a non-biased, strictly science based study as opposed to one that is propaganda based (which is what is on the table now) reveals the high risks that are present, then the project would be stopped in the name of public health and safety in addition to environmental reasons.

Why let insignificant issues such as that stand in the way of padding your own pockets?

The same goes for Shelby County who is pushing this project on Vincent. It is rumored they will approve it even if Vincent does not. They want the 6.5 million revenue and don't care what it takes to get it; even if that means destroying Vincent in the process.

The officials behavior and extremely poor choices border on purposeful endangerment and is against what leaders of municipalities are bound to do for their citizens and communities; which is to protect them.

As for the Coosa River, it's only the 10th most threatened river in the US, what's a little more harm to it matter? 

Answer; It should matter a lot more than it seems to this current string of "rotten fish" masquerading as public officials who care about their communities.

 

The Day the Quarry Came to Small Town Alabama

This the story of a few Florida bigwigs and some multi-million dollar businesses; a confusing shell game of misinformation from the County and the quarry representatives; money from destructive gain; one of the largest road building contractors in the nation; and corrupt or incompetent or apathetic government officials at every level.

It is a story about greed, and the way greed warps people, makes them view the very earth itself as something to be exploited and stripped and pumped for every last dollar it will yield up. The way greed makes human lives, thousands of them, no more important than figures on a ledger.

It is the story of Alabama, and in one way or another, it has been our story for as long as these state borders have existed. There is no way around it; our state and its long-gone riches were built on the backs of oppressed and enslaved human beings years ago. That kind of oppression, when white citizens here made vast fortunes by owning the lives of their black brethren, is gone. We are all in it together now.

Alabama has had a hard, painful road towards reconciliation. Its citizens, black and white, still often have a difficult time trusting each other in light of our troubled history. But we’re trying. Look around you; the people, the regular citizens of Shelby County, are not its problem.

We may disagree on politics, but we sit together at Commission and City Council meetings and treat each other, mostly, with respect. We are working, just by living here together, toward building a future for this home of ours. We know, and have for a long time, that we all need the same basic things out of life, and as long as we need them together, we can seek them together.

The old bad guys are dead and in the ground. The new ones drive SUVs with Dade and Jefferson County plates.
…put down your Blackberries, guys, and stay your attorneys. We do not mean you are “bad people.” But in this story, you are the villains.

You are chasing the American Dream, of course, just trying to make a dollar, and providing the country with the valuable and much-needed service of limestone for building roads. You ask to come by your permits legally, and with the full-throated blessing of Vincent’s elected representatives, who are, after all, just trying to get a little revenue for their little cash-strapped community.

No matter.

Here is our fear; no amount of money will be able to make up for what this quarry will do to our land and citizens. The City of Vincent is relying on ADEM and WRQ to ensure that the laws are followed and carried out by the quarry. While an environmental lawsuit against the city seems far-fetched to them now, an operation of this size, magnitude and excavation depth in close proximity to the river, rail lines and gas and oil lines cannot continue to be thought of as safe by any reasonable mind. There are inherent risks associated with mining that extend beyond just the pit, especially in geography that is sensitive to subsidence as Shelby County is.

This continues to be downplayed as a non-issue to the residents of this community. In the event something does happen that causes tragedy, we would remind all of those involved that their words may come back to haunt them by a savvy group of plaintiff’s lawyers. Vincent and Shelby County may get out of it unscathed, but we would not bet on it. White Rock Quarries can afford to pay whatever fines it may incur for whatever its employees may or may not have done. Can the city of Vincent and those that “call the shot?”

The companies who are taking the bulk of the millions generated by the limestone extraction will never have to set foot in our county again once the quarry outlives its usefulness. This may come earlier than they we all think if it floods or worse happens. They will never drink our water, breathe our air, or eat bream from our creeks. They can be in charge from offices with glitzy addresses, never get a speck of dust on their hands, and endorse fat checks until those pristine fingers need a latte break. Can you local officials?

Our elected officials, for the most part, believe they will be temporarily better off financially. They get power (a teeny little bit, but that’s enough to satisfy most people), they get to rub elbows with folks who have even more money and power than they do, and they get the feeling of thinking they have done something “good” for the people whose lives they govern: they got a smattering of cold, hard cash to spend on pet projects and a chance to put their own dirty little fingers in a lot of cash.

This, if we must remind you, is the state where people were willing to sacrifice their livelihoods, their personal safety, even their lives in the struggle for the right to vote, the right to say, “In this small way, my voice matters. I have a say, and mine is worth as much as yours is, no matter who you are.” That voice is now all but drowned out by the sons and daughters of the men who fought to get it, which would apply to the two sole minority city officials; Ernest Kidd and Bridgette Jordan-Smith.

Do you remember the apathetic and disinterested looks you leaders wore, as you sat in your chairs at the last public meeting, with strong disapproval directed right at you, a strong majority of Vincent’s citizens telling you, “We don’t want this quarry?” We remember. You elected leaders get the same look when we citizens dare to question your actions. It is the look WRQ gave us when they came to tell us how much they were going to make sure nothing bad happened here in May 2009. That look is the look of power, certain of its rightness. Or, if not of rightness, at least of the fact that it will get what it wants.

They get it all; we get their big holes, lose almost 1000 acres of prime farmland and our way of life as a quiet, rural community forever.

Or maybe not. Environmental lawsuits may get filed one minute, excavation may stop the next. A few weeks after that, the owners of the quarry will be demanding through their high-priced super lawyers for the right to continue business and they may get that granted. Doesn’t mean anything’s going to change just yet, far from it. Every statement this company and it’s PR and legal men have released takes pains to reassure the public the quarry will do no damage.

When people, regular, good, now voiceless people like the minority residents of the River Loop in Vincent, Alabama plead for help, money clouds the judgment of anyone who can.  The fat cats see money, as do our elected officials, and even ADEM  and the Environmental Management Commission may go right along with them and permit this quarry.

Fortunately for us, eventually someone will look at Vincent and see something besides a poor, backwoods little city no one’s heard of, with beautiful land, but leadership not representative of all the people, and easy pickings for the big city boys to buffalo with promises of riches. Someone will look down here and see, of all things, people. Human beings, whose very quality of life may become a mere casualty of the quest to collect as many little green pieces of paper as you can before you die. And somebody will realize that is wrong.

When we can step outside of the endless pursuit of more and see that all those things we’re knocking over to get at it have eyes and mouths and names and beating hearts like ours, we’re not so quick to leave them lying in our wake. It is a lesson Alabama has come by honestly.

It is a lesson that Vincent and Shelby County has yet to learn from.