Meeting Minutes for Nanjemoy-Potomac Environmental Coalition, Inc

Meeting Minutes for Nanjemoy-Potomac Environmental Coalition, Inc.

5/31/00

1. Gloria Heisserman (meeting moderator): Welcomed attendees and stated that information presented tonight was gathered from the Charles Co. Planning Office and personnel, Maryland Department of Environment, the state office that issues mining permits, and numerous offices of Maryland Department of Natural Resources. She gave meeting outline: scheduled presenters speak then public comment period (3-minute limit per person).

2. Deanna Wheeler: Stated that she learned of the proposed mining around the beginning of May and began researching the project. She shared the results of her research as follows.

- Maryland Rock Co., aka Arundel Rock, aka Florida Rock has a contract to purchase the Pepco land at Douglas Point contingent on approval of permits needed for surface mining.

- Maryland Rock Co. is the present owner of the Goose Bay mining operation on Rt 224.

- The following maps were shown: a map of the Pepco land, maps that detailed the properties adjacent to the Pepco land, and a color map that detailed the mining operation. The color map revealed the location of the three phases of mining, the 5 gravel stockpiles, a 10 acre man made pond, and the barge loadout basin. The same map also showed the 1000 foot critical area bordering the river, the two known eagle's nests on the site, wetland areas, and the 100 foot buffers between the mining sites and the adjacent properties.

- Phase one of the mining operation is 207 acres on the riverside of Rt 224. Phase two (268 acres) and phase 3 (71 acres) are on the opposite side of Rt 224.

- A sand and gravel wash plant is also part of the proposed operation. It will be located on the riverside of Rt 224.

- Maryland Rock Co. already owns a parcel of land adjacent to the Pepco property. A Maryland Rock representative told Deanna that they intended to mine that site also, but it was not included in this application.

- A chart comparing the Goose Bay operation on Rt 224 and the proposed Douglas Point operation was shown.

Goose Bay (owned by Maryland Rock since 1997):

less than 100 acres mined

150 to 160 acres cleared of trees

75 to 80 acres reclaimed already

less than 5 years left to mine

Douglas Point:

546 acres will be mined

600 acres cleared of trees

plan to clear, mine, and reclaim 50 acres, then move onto next 50 acres

start mining in 5 years

- The Goose Bay operation on Rt 224 is one-fifth the size of the proposed Douglas Point operation.

- If the river dredging operation is approved, the loadout basin would be 150 feet wide. If they are not allowed to dredge in order to protect the submerged aquatic vegetation, they intend to build a pier 1000 to 1600 foot long. This length is required to reach an area where the water is 12 to 14 feet deep. A loaded barge has a draft of 10 feet.

- Aerial photographs of the proposed mining site and the existing mining site on Rt 224 were shown. One aerial photograph had been altered to illustrate the area that phase one of the mine would cover and also illustrate how far a 1600 ft pier would extend from the shore.

- The mining company needs to be granted special exceptions for mining and a sand and gravel wash plant from the Charles County Board of Appeals. The hearing for this matter has not been scheduled but is tentatively set for July 11 or 25th. The hearing will probably take place over two evenings.

- The next step for the mining company is to obtain all the permits required. This process may take several years. If granted approval, then the land would be prepared by clearing over 600 acres of forest. A 14-foot channel would be dredged to the shoreline or a 1600-foot pier and a large loadout basin would be built on the water. A gravel washing plant would be built. A conveyor system would be installed that would go to the loadout basin and the mining would begin.

- The hours of operation at Douglas Point would be from sunrise to sunset 6 days a week.

- The Douglas Point land was acquired by Pepco by eminent domain to be the site of a nuclear power plant in the early 1970's. After a four year long survey by Calvert Posey through Charles County Community College funded by a grant from Pepco, Pepco was unable to build due to funding issues and the presence of rare and endangered species on the property.

- The Douglas Point property has captured the interest of many people, including Representative Hoyer, Senator Sarbanes, Maryland DNR, the Nature Conservancy, Charles County Public Facilities and the Conservation Fund. State funding has been approved for the purchase of this property along with two other nearby tracts of land to be used as parkland.

- The State of Maryland is very interested in protecting this land but must now wait until the property is not under contract.

- The county commissioners rejected proposals to purchase this land three times even when funded by the Nature Conservancy, the Conservation Fund, and Rural Legacy.

- Commissioner Jarboe told Deanna to tell the attendees that he supports the use of the property as a park.

3. Mike Ziebell: He narrated a video showing the Goose Bay mining operation on Rt 224 and the proposed mining site at Douglas Point. This video had aerial footage of both sites and footage of the Goose Bay mine that was recorded from a boat.

4. George Wilmot (Southern Maryland Audubon Society): He said that the Southern Maryland Audubon Society has been doing quantitative surveys during the nesting season of forest interior nesting birds since 1955. In 1996 one of these surveys was done at Douglas Point. He spoke of the soil types on the property. The area of mining phase one has a heavy clay surface soil. Heavy clay surface soil makes the forest in that area poor for forest interior nesting birds. The area below phase one is a different soil type and is a richer forest. This area has much better productivity in terms of forest interior nesting birds. Most of our forest interior nesting birds are neotropical migrants (birds that nest up here and go to Central and South America and the tropics for the winter). Even the loss of the poor forest area will have an impact on the whole area. There have been many studies that show the larger the forest the more forest interior nesting birds you have. Fragmentation of forest by the mining operations presents a serious loss even though this forest area may be primarily useful as a buffer. He also spoke of one of the great assets for bird life in the area being the tidal Potomac. This area has very high productivity for fish. Great blue herons and eagles both take advantage of this resource. Its one of the most productive places in the state for nesting eagles. He thinks that the reason that this region is good for fisheries is because it has a natural undeveloped shoreline.

5. Mr. Hurd (President of the Maryland Geological Society): He stated that whole shoreline shown is one of the most important fossil areas in the state. The fossils found in this area are as old as 55 to 60 million years. They have found many unique fossils there, some one of a kind. They have actually found some birds from that era on these shores and have gotten to name them. He would hate to see this area lost for everyone and it should become a park. He recommended that everyone write letters to try and save this land from development.

5. Mike Callahan (Nanjemoy Creek Environmental Education Center and member of Maryland Ornithological Society): He displayed birds that live in the area and could be put at risk by development. He had two stuffed examples of neotropical migrants that are forest interior dwelling birds, a Wood Thrush and an Ovenbird (a type of warbler). These birds, especially the Wood Thrush have dropped in numbers drastically over the last several years. He also had another bird that is found in the forest interior, a live Barred Owl.

6. Calvert Posey (retired biologist): His previous work in the 1970's, a biological study of the Douglas Point area, found some very exciting plants and animals. He said that its probably the only place in southern Maryland where someone could say they had seen evidence of bobcats. He felt that the plants in the area are really important. There were plants found there that should not have been in Maryland, quite rare plants. He also spoke of a rare butterfly that he had seen in this area. This butterfly now no longer occurs east of the Appalachians. They found close to a hundred species of butterfly at the Douglas Point site. Including some northern species that should not be this far south and other species that should not be this far north. He expressed concern for the site and also support for the land becoming a park.

7. Pete Cooksey (Friends of Zekiah Swamp): He stated that his group went through this same situation three years ago when a sign went up across the road from where he lives about a hearing for a gravel pit. They felt that their property values would suffer and their lifestyles were going to change. He wanted to tell us what his organization went through and what they recommend. He made the following points.

- What's in this proposal for Charles County? Nothing. What is in this proposal for Maryland Rock? Money, millions of dollars.

- He believes Maryland Rock Company should do two things before they even apply.

1. Offer to purchase the homes of people living near the site because their value goes straight down.

2. Agree to compensate the people living further out from the site where the dust and noise and other problems from this operation will also have an impact.

- Sam Bowling has proposed that the sand and gravel mined in Charles County be taxed. The county commissioners sent it up to the delegates. They sent it back. Fifteen cents a ton on the amount of gravel being mined in Charles County would bring in a couple million dollars to the county. Then we would be getting something out of all of this, but we aren't.

- What can we do? Organize, hire an attorney, increase membership, and incorporate. If the Board of Appeals grants the special exceptions needed by the mining company, we can appeal the decision to the county commissioners. The county commissioners work for us, they don't work for Maryland Rock.

- Charles County is now furnishing nearly 1/4 of the gravel mined in the State of Maryland.

- The property tax rate of the land used for a gravel pit stays at the agricultural rate so there is no increase in property tax on the land. Most of the owners of these plants live outside the county so we don't get the benefit of the piggyback tax. We're getting ripped off big time.

- There are 790 truck loads of gravel authorized on route 6 east per day and 420 truck loads of gravel authorized on route 6 west per day. That totals 1210 trips on route 6 (one way). The empty trucks have to come in, so that's 1420 trips per day. The total number of gravel trucks on the roads in Charles County is 2600 per day.

8. Mr. Kelpy (Maryland Bass Federation): He stated that the use of that much land would have a very dramatic effect. The SAV's (submerged aquatic vegetation) are very important to bass fishing and the Potomac in general. The Maryland Bass Federation will look at the proposed mining project and develop a stance on the matter. It doesn't look like a good project.

9. Gloria Heisserman: She introduced the proposed officers of the Nanjemoy-Potomac Environmental Coalition: Deanna Wheeler (President), Gloria Heisserman (Vice President), Kim Barrett (Treasurer), Janet Cox (Secretary). She also noted that the IRS requires a group to incorporate if it is going to be doing any fundraising. A conservative estimate for lawyer's fees to fight the proposed gravel pit is $25,000. She thanked attorney Gene Pitrof for his legal advice. He also worked with Friends of Zekiah Swamp. A five-dollar donation is required for membership in the Nanjemoy-Potomac Environmental Coalition.

10. Scott Bell (Potomac Riverkeepers): The Potomac Riverkeepers is a new non-profit organization dedicated to the protection and restoration of the Potomac River. Potomac Riverkeepers is about enforcing environmental laws and regulations. They will litigate if necessary to accomplish these goals. The organization wants to make sure that anyone who asks for a permit in the Potomac watershed does it the way they're supposed to do it. He made the following points.

- The Nanjemoy residents are organizing very early in the mining approval process.

- The local residents can make a difference and must contact legislators.

- His organization can provide access to technical advisors that can model what this "pit" will do. He said that the mining company will make a hole, leave, and we'll be stuck with it.

- They can bring in experts who have dealt with this all over the country and they'll draw a picture of it for everyone. These experts will tell you what will happen to your bass fisheries in the cove. They'll tell you what will happen when the Corp gives the mining company a permit to dredge and then they say "oh, we're sorry, there are PCB's in the Potomac". Then Maryland DNR will say "Don't eat more than two fish a year form this section of the river."

- They can provide legal assistance.

- The Potomac Riverkeepers will act as our fiscal sponsor since the Nanjemoy-Potomac Environmental Coalition is not yet set up as a non-profit organization. Checks can be written to "Potomac Riverkeepers - Douglas Point Fund". These contributions are tax deductible.

11. At this point in the meeting the floor was open to the general public. No one who took the opportunity to speak was in favor of the proposed mining. Some of the speaker's comments are summarized below.

12. Robert Boone (Anacostia Watershed Society): He noted that the Nanjemoy area is paradise. The Anacostia Watershed Society sponsors a kayak trip every year. There are very few places to camp along the river in this area and Douglas Point is one of them. He would like to see the site preserved.

13. Bonnie Bick (Friends of Mount Aventine and Sierra Club): She urged Maryland Rock Co. to withdraw their mining application.

14. Mr. Kriemelmeyer: He pledged to give $500 to the cause.

15. Joan Bowling: She spoke of the difficulties encountered when they were fighting the construction of a nuclear power plant at Douglas Point in the 1970's. She encouraged the attendees to take the time to fight the proposed gravel pit. Her feeling is that no one should barge out what belongs to us.

16. Gloria Heisserman: She mentioned that commissioner D. Mayer had stopped in at the meeting and had left. She read a statement from his office expressing that it would be a conflict of interest for him to stay at the meeting or address the attendees. She also noted that the mining company's application said that up to 5 barges and 12 trucks a day would leave the site.

17. Deanna Wheeler: She said that the DNR has very loose requirements for the reclamation of the land. Maryland Rock has not submitted a reclamation plan.

18. Norma Hurley (Nanjemoy History Writers): She spoke about the historical significance of the Nanjemoy area. In 1888 there was a huge amusement park here. There are many cemetaries in the area, they believe one is a military cemetary (possibly Civil War) and another is a slave cemetary. The area's history needs to be researched. If the gravel mine tears up the land the information will be lost. Her grooup is writing a book that will give Nanjemoy its place in Charles County history.

19: Gloria Heisserman: Future meetings will be posted on Nanjemoy's website (Nanjemoy.net) and flyers will be posted in the community. A membership in the Nanjemoy-Potomac Environmental Coalition is 5 dollars. Volunteers and additional contributions are greatly needed. There are form letters (to commissioners and Board of Appeals) for everyone to sign. The Board of Appeals hearing will be in July.