Do Citizens’ Concerns Matter?

Meredith Moench is president of the Lummi Island Conservancy and has been a near neighbor of the Lummi Island quarry for eight years. See the October/November 2011 issue of Whatcom Watch for an overview of the Lummi Island Quarry expansion.

Part 2

The Lummi Island Conservancy’s State Environmental Policy Act appeal will be heard by the Whatcom County Hearing Examiner on Jan. 11, 2012. Letters of support are needed prior to that date. Please go to http://www.lummiislandquarry.com for more information and to make donations.

I think the word is already out, so this is not giving away any secrets. If you are a mining company owner seeking to maximize your profits with a minimum of public and environmental scrutiny then come to Whatcom County. Here’s what you do. First, request a zoning change that will set aside your property for future surface mining. Pick up an application from the Planning and Development Services Department. You will be asked to fill out an environmental checklist, but don’t put too much time or worry into it, because it is not important. The zoning change you are applying for is called a Mineral Resource Land (MRL) Overlay, and in Whatcom County this is termed a “proposal,” a mere paper change on a map. When filling out your application and checklist, it will help if you call your proposal “environmentally friendly” at every opportunity, and avoid answering any questions that might make this claim look dubious. On sticky questions, just write “N/A” or”None” or “will be addressed in future mining permit application.” You will not be required to submit any scientific or expert evidence to back up your answers so don’t worry about it.

Consistent with their “phased” environmental review process, the Planning Department staff will issue a Determination of Non-Significance (DNS). This might upset some local citizens who find surface mining dirty, noisy, environmentally damaging, and ruinous to their beautiful shoreline, but don’t worry about them. A flurry of activity involving hours and hours of letter writing and environmental research will result in much public commenting. Remain unfazed. In a couple of weeks all these commenting citizens will receive a letter from the Director of Planning expressing appreciation for their participation and informing them that this proposal has no environmental impacts needing serious review at this time; after all, it is just a paper change. They will be assured additional environmental review will take place later during actual permitting. If your zoning change is subsequently approved by the County Council you will be able to apply for an administrative permit to begin mining operations. No need to wait for the future. No public hearing will be required and if past history is any indicator, your same old environmental checklist will do just fine. Maybe the public commenters will reappear, but have no fear. Any environmental issues that might have made your property unsuitable for surface mining will now go away through the magic of permitting. You can just slip right in there and do your thing. Those noisy commenting citizens will just have to live with it.

On December 22, 2010 the Whatcom County Surface Mining Administrator issued a Notice of Violations for Lummi Rock LLC/Aggregates West, Inc. involving mining operations conducted at the quarry outside of the permitted boundaries. These violations included: 1) inaccurate and misrepresentative site plans submitted with their 2007 administrative permit application leading to inaccurate authorization of that permit; 2) substantial unpermitted rock excavation estimated on the order of 200,000 tons; 3) unpermitted rock excavation into a neighboring property; 4) unpermitted ancillary surface mining activity and road building beyond the west MRL boundary. (This busy new road is as close as 85 feet to neighboring residents’ properties.)

Choosing not to revoke the quarry’s permit, the county dictated a less severe course requiring the quarry owner to complete “administrative corrective” actions and field remediation. Lummi Rock LLC subsequently appealed, but withdrew their appeal in October a few days before it was scheduled for a hearing before the Whatcom County Hearing Examiner. According to the county Surface Mining Administrator, Lummi Rock LLC will be required to make the required corrections, including removal of the road constructed outside of their permit boundaries. Good enough, but one has to wonder what it takes to have a permit revoked. §