Green Bluff Residents Argue Against Mine Expansion

A dozen Green Bluff residents argued Friday against a Spokane County Division of Engineering proposal to expand a gravel mine and crushing operation near their homes.

The engineers are asking to have about 100 acres of land east of Sands Road rezoned from general agriculture to allow mining.

The county has operated a mine on 33 acres in the same area sporadically since 1986.

Residents fear the noise, dust, potential damage to wells and heavy truck traffic will destroy the tranquil quality of life that drew them to the farm community.

They argued the mining proposal is a non-compatible and inappropriate land use.

“We tried to hit as many comprehensive plan issues as we could,” neighbor Jane Salnick said after the hearing.

Residents also argue that the additional 100 acres of land to expand the mine is unnecessary and a waste of taxpayer money.

But county engineers say the mine will save taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars by reducing the number of long trips trucks would have to make to haul gravel to the Green Bluff area.

They are planning to mine in phases, covering and reclaiming one section before continuing to the next.

Only small sections will be fenced, allowing wildlife free access to the rest. Noise will be monitored.

Spokane County Hearing Examiner Michael Dempsey is expected to announce his decision on the rezoning request in about a month.

The county has operated a mine on 33 acres in the same area for about 12 years. When it was opened, counties were not subject to their own zoning laws. Now the rules have changed and the county is required to rezone the land to allow the new gravel mine.

Spokane county staff recommends the rezoning request be approved, but with a dozen measures designed to soften the impact on nearby residents, wildlife and roads.

“This is the smallest, least frequently operated gravel operation I’ve been involved in,” said Stan Schultz, an attorney hired by the county to represent the engineers at the hearing.

“Operation of the mine will be very sporadic, and will provide gravel resources for use in the surrounding area,” he said.

Vern Scoggin, with the county division of engineering, said using any of the county’s other gravel sites would be cost prohibitive because of transportation costs.

Scoggin said about 1.5 million tons of rock will be produced at the Green Bluff mine and could save taxpayers $2.2 million.

But opponents questioned the county’s arithmetic. The county is buying the land for about $500,000. They’ve invested much more into environmental studies and hiring an outside attorney, neighbors argued.

The Pat Kehn Mine, which the county bought for $50,000 a few years ago in the Colbert area, should provide plenty of gravel for road projects in both areas, opponents said.

Representatives of the Green Bluff Growers Association, which promotes many of the Green Bluff festivals and events, didn’t testify at the hearing.

Some Green Bluff residents support the county mining operation, saying it’s been going on for years with little impact on the surrounding community.

At least one resident said he was concerned that without the expanded mine, roads in Green Bluff would never be improved.

The Friends of Green Bluff, presented organized opposition to the project, with a dozen residents testifying about noise, water, roads, and potential ruin of Green Bluff as a cultural resource.

They were represented by attorney Craig Trueblood.

Kristy Smith urged the hearing examiner to give the Green Bluff the same consideration he would give the the county courthouse and “preserve the essence and presence of a county cultural resource.”

Dr. Elizabeth DeNiro, who lives a half-mile from the mine, noted that constant noise, especially the type created by a rock crushers, causes devastating stress.

She described a family picnic during one of the past mining operations and not being able to hear standard dinner conversation.

“I live there, I know it’s loud,” she said.

Both sides offered experts, testifying to the impact of noise from the crushing, grinding, mixing, and trucks.

Dennis Duerr has lived next door to the proposed mine for 12 years. He said he not only heard the noise, but felt vibrations shake his house during past mining work. He believes blasting in 1986 damaged his well.

He also worries about the safety of children on school buses, people walking on the roads and damage to pavement from the hundreds of truck trips along the two-lane country roads.

Attorney Trueblood asked for some sort of routine that will allow residents to effectively report excessive noise and get a response, and to provide financial assurance in case wells run dry because of blasting, or roads are destroyed by hundreds of truck trips.

Lisa Balazs recently moved to Green Bluff, charmed by the quiet country atmosphere. Raised in Phoenix, she recounted the thrill of tasting a cherry she picked from a Green Bluff tree.

She’s concerned blasting will destroy the area’s water and the farming will disappear with it.

“The chance to experience agriculture could be lost to millions of people and school children,” she said.

, DataTimes