Stop Idaho Maryland Mine Reopening in Grass Valley
- by: CLAIM-GV
- recipient: Grass Valley City Council, Nevada County Bd. of Supervisors
The Idaho Maryland Mine Corporation (IMMC) proposes to reopen a long closed gold mine in the middle of Grass Valley, CA. The health impacts associated with reopening this mine far outweigh any possible benefit.
This project will:
<> significantly and unavoidably increase local air pollution;
<> increase noise, traffic and dust;
<> drain wells in the vicinity of the project site and impact local water quality;
<> inflict incessant blasting on the community, which will likely force several high-tech companies to relocate;
<> increase Green House Gas emissions by 20M tons
<> create real potential for contamination from cyanide, lime, hydrochloric acid, and others.
We wholeheartedly support bringing high technology jobs, alternative fuel R&D, solar cell development and other 21st century jobs into our area. Now is the time for Grass Valley and Nevada County to come together and aggressively seek to capture as much new green industry as possible given the imminent federal funding being made available for these opportunities. We are certain that Grass Valley and Nevada County will be better off in both the short term and the long term without the IMMC project.
We, the undersigned, are opposed to re-opening the Idaho-Maryland Gold Mine and the establishment of a related Ceramics Factory and /or Aggregate Plant (IMMC project) in Grass Valley, California.
The health impacts associated with the IMMC project far outweigh any possible benefit. Our community's air quality has received a failing "F" grade for the last several years from the American Lung Association. The IMMC project would (per the 2008 Draft Environmental Impact Report) significantly and unavoidably increase local air pollution. It is simply unacceptable to approve a project that would further increase air pollution in our community. We are also deeply concerned about the noise, traffic and dust generated by the mine; the de-watering that could drain wells in the vicinity of the project site and impact their water quality; the blasting vibrations that could force local high-tech companies to leave our area; the significant increase in Green House Gas emissions and the potential of contamination from the toxic materials used in the mine, which include cyanide, lime, hydrochloric acid and many others. These materials will be regularly transported by truck along dangerous Highway 49 and through Grass Valley. In addition, there is the very likely possibility that toxic heavy metals from legacy mining, including mercury, lead and arsenic, could be released by the proposed mining and ceramics plant operations.
Our community is currently suffering from the toxic legacy of past gold mining in the area, including polluted watersheds, Superfund cleanup sites, and contaminated water from the Magenta Drain in Grass Valley, and at Grizzly Hill School in North San Juan. We do not want to add additional mining related impacts to our community for years into the future.
Our community has the capacity, resources, knowledge and wisdom to create permanent, sustainable 21st century jobs and to stimulate the local economy in ways that will not negatively impact the health of our community. We ask the Grass Valley Planning Commission, the Grass Valley City Council, and the Nevada County Board of Supervisors to reject the re-opening of the Idaho-Maryland Mine, the rezoning of the IMM site, the project plan and any and all other applications for this purpose.
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