Massive Mining Operation planned for West Cotati?

[Sabrina]

This was just sent to me by Frank Heyhurst of Zone music asking me to send to my list. This is about an awful proposal for mining in Cotati. Read on, and see link within:


I remember back in the day - "protest" and musical performance went hand in hand. Sometimes the music was the window dressing for speeches - and sometimes the musicians themselves were protesting.

For example? Remember Country Joe at Woodstock? GIMME AN "F"!

I protested back then - and as you are guessing, I'm about to protest again, right now.

Then, I was pissed off by hypocrisy, greed, stupidity and corruption on the part of the older generation that brought us the VietNam War, Watergate, and leaders who said (and believed) things like "If you've seen one Redwood tree you've seen them all."

Now? Well I'm still distressed by the same things, only now, it's my contemporaries doing dirty deeds that I object to - plus I've added a few concerns: destruction of our environment, destruction of the species who share life with us on this little planet, and increasing concern for the blind incompetence and corruption of our current leaders in California State government, and in our Federal government.

Oh - I'm also concerned by the full-scale devastation of the environment in China, and the impact that it will increasingly have directly on us here in California - where the toxic clouds of their insane slave-labor based industrial manufacturing system are blowing our way, and threaten to poison our air and water - as they already are doing to Japan.

You think I'm ranting? We've got the same problem just a little west of Cotati, right here in Sonoma County! It is being made possible by a departing Sonoma County Board of Supervisors - who are making decisions that will have a tragic impact forever, but are doing it anyway - and one can only guess at their motives. What could possibly compel people who hold the public's trust to violate it so blatantly?

Check this out: https://www.carrq.org/

You will find a sordid tale of inside dealing behind closed doors and under the radar of the general public. If you think China is acting irresponsibly in regards to the environment, Cotati's air quality will be destroyed by a mining operation proposed for the Roblar road area just west of town.

And the potential impact of high level explosive blasting used to mine gravel, in an area directly adjacent to a old landfill dump that is unlined, and contains who-knows-what toxins from the more liberal dumping days of the 50's, 60's and 70's -- this is a recipe for devastation of the water supply of the central Sonoma County Area.

And they know it! The Supervisors know that this could be catastrophic - and their response? To ask the developer, North Bay Construction, to carry insurance that relieves the County of responsibility.

Injury to citizens living in the county and destruction of the water supply are not covered - just the County being protected from lawsuits as a consequence of this bad deal. The cost of a clean-up would go into the hundreds of millions -- and guess who would pay for that - it would be you and me!

This is outrageous! Really outrageous, because they know that there is a very high probability that there will be damage to the environment and to the water supply, yet they choose to look the other way.

And - yep, you guessed it - all of the "required" studies are compromised, have been waived, and or have been modified and/or shelved by a Board of Supervisors who are complicit in allowing this horrific destruction occur in the name of MONEY.

And we haven't even talked about the sale of 250 acres from the developer to the County, and then the gift-back to the developer of a roadway thru the County purchased land for 150 to 240 gravel trucks a day to drive through this beautiful pastoral land, then on Roblar Road, Pepper Road, Valley Ford Road and Stony Point Road, out to Highway 101 in Cotati.

We're talking 1000 huge gravel trucks roaring along little country roads a week. Have you ever ridden a bike out on these roads? It's beautiful, and the roads are not designed for heavy industrial use. Oh - and their hours of operation? 7AM to 10PM.

Bottom line? This is a bad deal - and it's a deal that could use some light of day!

If there is any good news, it is that everyone with any sense opposes the gravel mining operation proposed for the Roblar Road area -- check out the report from the Russian River Caretaker organization, at the CARRQ website above -- they spell all of this out in great detail.

The mine is absolutely unnecessary to the needs of the County - there is more gravel already available to the county's construction needs than can be used - and yet this dirty deal continues to move forward - are you getting the picture?

Heck yes I'm pissed off! That this could be happening here and now! And I'm telling you as loud and clearly as I can -- we have got to stop this shortsighted and potentially devastating deal from going down.

Please look at the web site, get informed, review the materials - make up your own mind -- and then - PLEASE TAKE ACTION.

Call or write the County Supervisors who will vote on the "give away" NOW! Tell them NO to gravel mining and gravel trucking on this beautiful irreplaceable pastoral land. Say NO to destruction of our County's water supply. Say NO to destruction of Cotati's air quality!

Say NO to deals being made with out regard for our environment and the safety and well being of our citizens.

The Supervisors to express your opinion to are:
Valerie Brown [email protected] (https://www.waccobb.net/forums/[email protected])
Shirley Zane [email protected] (https://www.waccobb.net/forums/[email protected])
Efren Carrillo [email protected] (https://www.waccobb.net/forums/[email protected])

Thank you!

Oh - one more thing, if you've read this far, please go to the web site https://www.carrq.org/ and check it out for yourself -- give it 15 minutes. Oh, and, gimme an "F"!


Frank

[CSummer]

A small, but perhaps useful correction: This is Not in "West Cotati." It is 6 - 7 miles west of Cotati in an unincorporated area (actually, it's in the Petaluma postal district). It is not within any city limits - just so no one gets the impression that the city of Cotati has any jurisdiction.

[Gratongirl]

MAJOR CORRECTION: The Board of Supervisors has not weighed in on the Roblar Road Quarry, and it has not come before them...so all of the comments aimed at what they have directed, overlooked, or looked the other way on are way off base, and inaccurate.

minor correction: it is Efren Carrillo, not Efron or Efrin :wink:

thanks

[Barry]

Thanks for setting the record (and spelling!) straight, Gratongirl! I fixed the spelling of Efren's name and corrected the link to Sonoma County Citizens for Responsible Land Use (https://www.carrq.org/) in the original post.

I haven't looked into this issue yet, but once again I notice that advocacy website is produced by anonymous "Sonoma County Residents". I appreciate that Frank has stepped forward and taken responsibility for his publicly stated opinions above. I wish the rest of people who are responsible for the website would identify themselves. This goes for anybody who is participating in a public discussion on any topic of "official" (ie government) concern.

Barry





MAJOR CORRECTION: The Board of Supervisors has not weighed in on the Roblar Road Quarry, and it has not come before them...so all of the comments aimed at what they have directed, overlooked, or looked the other way on are way off base, and inaccurate.

minor correction: it is Efren Carrillo, not Efron or Efrin :wink:

thanks

[Sabrina]

Thanks for the clarification. I guess I knew that but since I lived in Cotati for many years, I guess I still consider Roblar Road part of the general neighborhood, and definitely it will affect the air quality in Cotati + Cotati may actually be the closest town to drive to from there. And your right, it's not city of Cotati that's got jurisdiction, it's the Sonoma Co. board of supervisors who've got a few addresses listed below to write to about this.


A small, but perhaps useful correction: This is Not in "West Cotati." It is 6 - 7 miles west of Cotati in an unincorporated area (actually, it's in the Petaluma postal district). It is not within any city limits - just so no one gets the impression that the city of Cotati has any jurisdiction.

[Sabrina]

Hi there,

I'm just posting another comment for Frank in response to some of the responses about the mining west of Cotati. He would really like to get in on the discussion himself and is figuring out how to properly get signed up; but for now his response is below.

Also, by the way, he did not make the title stating that the Mining Operation is planned for West Cotati, it was me. He just asked to have his letter forwarded w/out a title on it. I said West Cotati because I think of that general region as west Cotati w/out considering zip codes, as I had lived in that area a long time too, but within Cotati limits. Also, Frank mentions he's a new comer around here, but I have to say, maybe that's only on Waccobb. He's lived in the county a LONG time more than or at least 20 years, I'd say. Here's Frank's response:

First, CSSummer thinks that I said “West Cotati” as if that were part of Cotati – then makes a point to correct the impression that they had mistakenly created! Here’s what my post says “We've got the same problem just a little west of Cotati, right here in Sonoma County!”

I can’t take responsibility for people mis-reading what I said, and then correcting that, as if I had misrepresented the facts. C’mon!

Second, Gratongirl is either being naïve or disingenuous to suggest that because this issue has not been brought to the Board for a vote, that they have no knowledge or involvement in the history and progress of this proposed quarry as it has worked it’s way though the system. I’m going to assume that Gratongirl is a nice person and that she simply is naïve about how the system works when big money, high stakes, and political clout are involved.

Without making a big deal about it, I’d just like to suggest “WAKE UP!”

Finally — the suggestion was made by Barry that citizen groups with some sort of hidden agendas hide behind anonymous organizations like CARRQ. The truth is that this collection of Roblar Road area residents have been desperate for some sort of coverage and publicity of their situation. They have produced volumes of materials in an attempt to get some coverage, and they have been very forthright that their Board is comprised of Sue Buxton, President; Ed Ryska, Vice President; David Spilman, Treasurer: Jacqui McMahon, Secretary; Jason Merrick, Webmaster, and members including: Shirley Grant, Margaret Hanley, Bill Krinard, Donna Norton, Arthur Slater and Donna Spilman.

Again, I find it weird that this organization would be accused of hiding something when they have been desperately waving a distress flag as high as they can reach. So, again, is it OK to create an impression based on lack of research and follow through, and then blame the organization for being like the impression created?

I realize that I’m new around here. But, if what I have encountered here is typical of responses to controversial issues, it is no wonder that politicians can so easily manipulate both information and perception to their own purposes.

Self evident, right? READ what is written before you offer corrections based on your own misunderstanding!


A small, but perhaps useful correction: This is Not in "West Cotati." It is 6 - 7 miles west of Cotati in an unincorporated area (actually, it's in the Petaluma postal district). It is not within any city limits - just so no one gets the impression that the city of Cotati has any jurisdiction.



Thanks for the clarification. I guess I knew that but since I lived in Cotati for many years, I guess I still consider Roblar Road part of the general neighborhood, and definitely it will affect the air quality in Cotati + Cotati may actually be the closest town to drive to from there. And your right, it's not city of Cotati that's got jurisdiction, it's the Sonoma Co. board of supervisors who've got a few addresses listed below to write to about this.

[frank hayhurst]

Live and learn! (or) Mother Nature sends her Tiger Salamanders to rescue humans bent upon destroying the beauty of Sonoma County!

My most recent blog, voicing opposition to the proposed Roblar Road gravel quarry, has been a stick stuck into a hornets nest!

I’ve had people exclaim that “Cotati has no jurisdiction” in this matter — as if the destruction of Cotati’s air quality along with the destruction of the central Sonoma County watershed were some sort of minor legal issue – a minor technicality regarding who has jurisdiction.

Well - looking forward to 20 years of 1000 loaded gravel trucks a WEEK roaring through a quite pastoral region, including driving through Cotati on their way to Highway 101, is not a minor technicality.

I’ve also had it expressed that I was overstepping my bounds by claiming that some members of our County Board of Supervisors have been involved in easing this dirty deal through the county system – and that the whole quarry application process is ethically challenged.

Their argument boils down to “they haven’t voted on this yet, so they can not have had a hand in something they couldn't know anything about.”

Welcome to the real world!

Because the combination of political clout mixed with big money and high stakes creates its own weather system – with county staff and reporting committees rushing to get this project through the system before the citizens (and that would be us) figure out what has hit them.

But, along the way, I’ve also been introduced to some very proactive groups of people – First, the CARRQ people (Citizens against Roblar Rock Quarry) are wonderful people, whose concern far outstrips their own self-interest in protecting this beautiful area.

Yes the idea of high explosives and gravel trucks operating from 7 AM to 10 PM distresses them, but they genuinely feel that they are conservators of the land, and that they have a moral and ethical responsibility to care for it to the best of their ability. They are concerned, for example, with the protection of Sonoma County’s watershed – which is in great danger of being poisoned by the toxic waste by products of mining along with leakage from the adjoining unlined landfill dump site.

To get a sense for what the stakes are that I referred to earlier, please read the following excerpt from the Town Hall Coalition web site – this is another intensely proactive group concerned for the preservation of the beauty and natural resources of Sonoma County:

Untitled Document (https://www.townhallcoalition.org/)

“I firmly believe, from what I have seen, that this is the chosen spot of all this earth as far as Nature is concerned.”

– Luther Burbank (From a letter sent home to Massachusetts, soon after arriving in Sonoma County in 1875)

————————-

“Sonoma County is blessed with some of the most spectacular natural environments in the world.

Unfortunately, the current Sonoma County Board of Supervisors has approved land-use regulations that allow the conversion of our precious watersheds and forests to industrial vineyards, wine factories, “agricultural support services”, housing, and other developments.

We have some dangerous gaps in laws protecting public health and safety, water quality and quantity, the environment, and the quality of life of rural residents.

We desperately need a new Board of Supervisors - but until things change, Town Hall Coalition will work together with a network of concerned citizens to protect the common good.”

—————————–

Got that? The people entrusted with the care and preservation of our shared resources have not honored or lived up to this trust. We need to get clear answers from the current batch of would be Supervisors as to exactly where they stand on the Roblar Road quarry proposal, and on other equally destructive land uses — like the Bodega Quarry – a similar operation led by the Dutra team that would totally trash and poison our beautiful Bodega coast area.

I’m going to make this a mission! Lets do this together! At every opportunity, these are the kinds of issues that need to be raised – agreed?

Finally — I am a musician after all — so stay tuned for an afternoon concert in the park, in Cotati – with bands and speakers and consciousness raising, along with food and a silent auction.

Right now the event is being called “ROCK FOR NO ROCK!”

Oh — one last thing, Mother Nature may have the last word, because a survey crew accidently found some Tiger Salamanders on the Roblar Road quarry site — and that’s enough to stop the whole thing dead in its tracks… unless some of our current Supervisors manage to have the Tiger Salamander presence – an endangered species – waived in order for this quarry to go forward.

Hey – don’t think they aren’t capable of it.

But for now, the super hero of the salamanders, the rock star of Mother Nature’s under the rock band, the masked Tiger Salamander has come to the rescue of the human species in our seemingly hell-bent effort to destroy the beauty of this little planet in order to make a buck.

[Gratongirl]

Live and learn! Got that? The people entrusted with the care and preservation of our shared resources have not honored or lived up to this trust. We need to get clear answers from the current batch of would be Supervisors as to exactly where they stand on the Roblar Road quarry proposal, and on other equally destructive land uses — like the Bodega Quarry – a similar operation led by the Dutra team that would totally trash and poison our beautiful Bodega coast area.



another MAJOR correction: There is no current proposal for a Bodega Quarry proposed by Dutra. That project is dead...the need for a Coastal permit alone is enough to take it out of the realm of possibility.

The Quarry issue comes before the Board of Supervisors in the next two months...so asking those who will assume office in January about their position is not productive. Focus your attention on those in office now, your case will need to be made in the next few weeks.

The CARRQ group has done a great job of reaching out to decision makers in a respectful manner...with facts and position clearly defined.:2cents:

[frank hayhurst]

Thanks for the clarification ! -- and you are absolutely right, now is the time to focus on those Supervisors who are going to vote this year-- although the recent Tiger Salamander discovery will most likely push this vote into next year -- so, for us to know how the incoming crop of Supervisors would vote, and what their core values are, and who is contributing to their campaigns (for example, check out the money behind David Rabbitt!) this might actually be the determining factor in what eventually happens in the Roblar Road area.

But, assuming that the same people who managed to compromise the existing EIR and traffic studies -- which are seriously flawed - manage to crank up the system to push this quarry deal through before any more opposition mounts, the full force of as much attention as possible needs to be directed to the current Board of Supervisors.

Thanks for your interest in this issue -- I understand that there are huge ecological disasters occurring -- like the current major gulf oil spill - but even so, something as small as this one particular quarry has the same capacity to devastate - in this case, the groundwater of Sonoma County.

[Joan Cooper]

Thank you, Frank for raising our consciousness on who controls our environmental future in this County - Is it the Supervisors or the people who elect the supervisors? We need to remind our Supervisors that we elected them and we can replace them. The people of Sonoma County, when asked, vote environmentally. We voted for sales tax to fund the Open Space District to preserve open space. We voted (in 1998) by a super majority to create a Scenic View Corridor from the Marin line to Petaluma along 101 (Measure D). The Supervisors need to be reminded about the electorate's long memory on Supervisors' voting records.
Efren Carrillo particularly needs to hear from you . He works for the people, not the aggregate and construction industry fat cats. Will he sacrifice our environment and peace and quiet for the profits of the few?
Now ask yourself who owns the Roblar Road proposed quarry site, and who stands to benefit from its approval? Follow the money and link the money to campaign contributions to current candidates for Supervisor.

If you are voting in a District with an election coming up, get informed on the environmental record of each candidate. For example, in the 2nd DIstrict, Pam Torliatt is my choice for environmental stewardship and broad governance experience. She's the candidate we can count on to provide leadership to defend the Petaluma wetlands against the Dutra asphalt plant .

Joan Cooper





another MAJOR correction: There is no current proposal for a Bodega Quarry proposed by Dutra. That project is dead...the need for a Coastal permit alone is enough to take it out of the realm of possibility.

The Quarry issue comes before the Board of Supervisors in the next two months...so asking those who will assume office in January about their position is not productive. Focus your attention on those in office now, your case will need to be made in the next few weeks.

The CARRQ group has done a great job of reaching out to decision makers in a respectful manner...with facts and position clearly defined.:2cents:

[Joan Cooper]

Dear Community:

They're all connected: Interested in who owns North Bay Construction, proposer of the Roblar Road quarry and who all he hangs with? Check out this link:
About Us: Board of Directors (Basin Street Properties) (https://www.basin-street.com/about-us/board-of-directors.php)
Joan

another MAJOR correction: There is no current proposal for a Bodega Quarry proposed by Dutra. That project is dead...the need for a Coastal permit alone is enough to take it out of the realm of possibility.

The Quarry issue comes before the Board of Supervisors in the next two months...so asking those who will assume office in January about their position is not productive. Focus your attention on those in office now, your case will need to be made in the next few weeks.

The CARRQ group has done a great job of reaching out to decision makers in a respectful manner...with facts and position clearly defined.:2cents: