Minutes - 04-12-2000 - Laserfiche WebLink

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downwind into our yard or neighbor's yards. We don't need an industrial zone in the University Lake watershed. I urge our elected representatives to disapprove expansion -mine deeper, not wider. This is a win-win situation for both OWASA and the community. I think the real issue here is that is it really necessary to expand the quarry rather than mine deeper to provide a water supply far the future. And is it really necessary to subject the area to the real disruption in its rural character and to the environmental hazards that expansion would cause. I believe that the kind of informed and consistent statistical analysis that hasn't changed an demand of the projected water supply that Dr. Kramer has shown us is the most reasoned and reliable approach for answering this question. This analysis clearly shawl that it is not necessary to expand." Annette Broadwell, who lives off Bethel Hickory Grave Church Road, spoke about air quality. She said that research has shown that people who live in areas that have a high amount of Particulate Matter 10 have more respiratory problems. She asked the boards to please take seriously the year's worth of work that Elliot Cramer has done before making a decision. Brenda Eubanks, from Crestwood Subdivision, spoke about the gravesites at Bethel Hickory Grove Church and the seals on the caskets being broken and water getting in. She has had $12,000 worth of work done an wells. She said that Michael Vaught did go down into her well and he told her that American Stone Company and the blasting did affect it, but he also cut her electrical wire and burnt her pump out which cost her another $6,000. Dexter Rogers lives on Broadwell Road. He said that he has cracks as a result of the blasting. LeAnn Neese summarized the issues at hand on behalf of the Citizens Against Quarry Expansion. She said that OWASA planned for water assuming the worst case scenario. In this particular case, OWASA is in a situation where it contractually bound itself years ago to support the proposal tonight. In the three-party agreement, there is a provision in it that requires OWASA to support the quarry expansion. She said that the decision was not OWASA's to make. She said that the boards are in charge of planning for the future. She said that there was an argument made that OWASA did not have a right to the existing quarry, but there is a requirement in the Special Use Permit that the Durham's do something with the hole when the mining is finished. She encouraged the boards to look closely at Dr. Cramer's statistics and projections about the ability to use the existing quarry once it is mined out, and the very slight differential that there would be in available water if the quarry was taken across the road. She said that she was probably the only one speaking against the expansion tonight that did drink OWASA water because utilities are not taken to this area. She urged the boards to look closely at the projections that OWASA has made for growth. She said that the boards were empowered to make decisions about growth and growth projections. She concluded by saying that the evidence before the boards is clear and the existing quarry holds one billion gallons, and if the operationally quarry now is mined out, it would hold 2.1 billion gallons. The new quarry is not going to add significantly to availability unless the boards decide not to mine out the existing quarry. She said that the decision tonight was not a Special Use Permit decision. She said that the boards have to determine if they have a rational reason which would require them to make a change in a plan that already had a quarry, that already was planned to be used by OWASA, and that already supplies the water. Chair Carey invited anyone else to make further comments in writing to the Orange County Planning Board, the Town of Chapel Hill, or to the Town of Carrboro. ACTION Chair Carey entertained a motion to refer JPA-1-00 to the towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro far decision AND to refer JPA-1-00 and CP-1-00 to the Orange County Planning Board for a recommendation to the Orange County Board of Commissioners no sooner than June 29, 2000. A motion was made by Commissioner Gordon, seconded by Mayor Waldorf to refer JPA-1- 00 to the towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro for decision AND to refer JPA-1-00 and CP-1-00 to the Orange County Planning Board for a recommendation to the Orange County Board of Commissioners no sooner than June 29, 2000.