Howard residents less than impressed with sand mine agreement
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TOWN OF HOWARD — Residents in the Town of Howard seem less than impressed by a proposed developer’s agreement to operate the Albertville Valley sand mine.
The Howard Town Board held a public hearing November 29 on the proposed agreement with Northern Sands Wisconsin to develop a 1,300 acre frac sand mine southeast of Colfax that would stretch north and south along the Chippewa County and Dunn County line directly east of the intersection of county Highway N and county Highway A.
The proposed mine is known locally as the Albertville Valley sand mine.
The mine site is expected to include a wet processing plant, a dry processing plant, rail car storage area and a rail loading facility.
The site is located along the Canadian National rail line which runs through Colfax.
A public hearing on the proposed sand mine October 8 drew a standing-room-only crowd to the Howard town hall.
The public hearing on the developer’s agreement drew fewer people, but the town hall was still packed.
Zoning
The Town of Howard has no zoning of any kind, not Chippewa County zoning and not town zoning.
The Town of Howard does have a mine licensing ordinance, but the licensing ordinance is not an opportunity for the town board to say “no” to any company able to meet the terms of the licensing ordinance, said Larry Konopacki of the law firm Stafford Rosenbaum out of Madison, the attorney representing the town board.
The mine licensing ordinance does not give the town board the option to say the Town of Howard does not want the frac sand mine, he said.
The developer’s agreement would be contingent upon Northern Sands Wisconsin (NSW) following the reclamation plan approved by Chippewa County, the county-issued reclamation permit and the Town of Howard’s existing mining ordinance, blasting ordinance and exploration ordinance, Konopacki said.
The proposed developer’s agreement would allow NSW to operate unlimited hours for processing of the frac sand and for equipment repair and maintenance, he said.
Under the terms of the township’s mine licensing ordinance, excavation of the frac sand would be limited to 12 hours, Monday through Friday, during daylight hours, until 6 p.m., and to transload the sand onto rail cars during daylight hours, Konopacki said.
Trucking
One person in the audience asked if truck traffic would remain on Chippewa County roads.
All of the sand would be shipped to the processing and transloading site, and the sand would be transferred out only by rail, Konopacki said.
If NSW decides to use a conveyor system to bring the sand to the processing and transloading site, the company would have to come to the town board first for approval of the construction and maintenance plans for the conveyor, he said.
Chippewa County made a mistake on the reclamation permit, Konopacki noted.
The reclamation permit only requires material used in reclamation to be tested if it comes from off site. The Town of Howard’s proposed developer’s agreement requires all material that would be used in reclamation to be tested for contaminants before it is used in reclamation, he said.
The “processing payment” for residences within a half mile of the sand mine that is equal to the average property tax bill for residential properties in Howard, which would be paid every year from the first transport of sand until the mine is closed, also would include residences in the Town of Colfax, Konopacki said.
DNR permits
Town of Colfax resident Terry Nichols asked if the state Department of Natural Resources had issued the necessary permits yet for the NSW mine.
Nichols said he had searched online but could not find any reference to the permits.
The DNR may not have issued any permits yet, Konopacki said, adding that NSW must first obtain the DNR permits before the company can start mining.
The Chippewa County reclamation permit required NSW to submit a number of reports, such as a survey of all the surface water in the area, and Konopacki said he believed the reports required by the reclamation permit had been submitted to Chippewa County.
Chippewa County approved the reclamation permit in 2015. The deadline for submitting the reports was extended several times, and the company was eventually given until December 31, 2017.
One person in the audience asked if the property value guarantee for residences within a quarter of a mile would apply at any time during the life of the mine.
“Yes,” Konopacki said, adding that the property value guarantee starts six months after the agreement is signed but lasts for the life of the mine.
After Konopacki finished outlining the terms of the agreement, people who attended the public hearing were given five minutes each to make comments.
Other regs
Willem Gebben, a Town of Colfax resident, said the developer’s agreement supersedes other agreements and all of the township’s ordinances.
The town’s regulations are not relevant after the agreement is signed. The developer’s agreement also is contrary to the town’s comprehensive land use plan, he said.
In addition, the agreement does not prevent NSW from trucking in sand from other companies to be processed and shipped, Gebben said.
Why do the interests of the company supersede the interests of the residents? he asked.
The $15,000 payment in the property value guarantee that is above the fair market value will not be worth the same in 20 years, Gebben said.
The developer’s agreement is of no benefit to anyone other than Northern Sands Wisconsin, he said.
And it is “irresponsible” to not enclose the stockpiles, Gebben said.
NSW will not be allowed to bring in frac sand or waste material from other sites, and the developer’s agreement does not replace town ordinances other than where the agreement specifies, Konopacki said.
Silicosis
Andrea Clauson, who identified herself as a respiratory therapist and a nurse, said she was concerned about respirable crystalline silica and people developing the lung disease called silicosis.
A value has been placed on the lives of people “by the town board and those who leased their land” to Northern Sands Wisconsin, she said.
Silicosis can take up to 20 years to develop, Clauson said, noting that dust control was absent from the developer’s agreement.
Clauson wanted to know how many air monitors there would be and said more air monitors should be used in residential areas.
Exemptions
Patricia Popple of Chippewa Falls said many exemptions had already been granted for frac sand mines on the county and state level and wondered if the Town of Howard also planned on granting exemptions.
The companies “have the upper hand,” and regulations need to be tightened, she said.
Fossil fuels should be “kept in the ground” because of climate change, Popple said, adding that everyone needs to work together to reduce our reliance on petroleum.
Berm height
James Frisch said he was concerned about the berm height in the proposed developer’s agreement to screen the sand mine from nearby residences.
The berm height is supposed to be the height of the eaves so people cannot see over it into the sand mine, but Frisch said his house is located 50 feet “above the pit” and wondered if the berm height would be 60 feet.
At one point, the town board said they would “take care of” residents within a half mile of the sand mine, but now the distance is down to a quarter mile, Frisch said, adding that the developer’s agreement requires residents to wait six months before they can “get in line” to sell their properties.
All together, 32 homes are located within a half mile of the proposed sand mine, and 26 landowners have signed leases with Northern Sands Wisconsin, Frisch said.
“Twenty-six people outvoted 32,” he said.
Groundwater
One gentleman, who did not give his name, said he was concerned about the groundwater because water with a pH of 4.6 eats through copper and brass and will leach heavy metals out of the areas that are being mined.
Concentrated amounts of heavy metals will be in the overburden, and the mine will operate within 10 feet of the water table, he said.
Also, “that rail yard scares the beejeebers out of me,” the man said, adding that he was concerned, too, about dust since the process piles are not going to be covered.
“I thought everything would have to be covered,” he said.
The man said when he bought his property, the former owners did not tell him about the sand mine coming into the area.
By 2040, the children in the area will be drinking polluted water, he said.
Later on in the public hearing, Steve Eder, who works in the mining industry, said he, too, was concerned about the open stockpiles and their impact on the groundwater from heavy metals leaching out of the sand.
Northern Sands Wisconsin will be allowed to mine within 10 feet of the groundwater, but in a wet year, the groundwater can come up 10 feet, he said.
Eder said he also was concerned about heavy metals getting into the groundwater in backfilled areas.
How is that going to be monitored and remedied? Eder asked.
The overburden will contain heavy metals and cannot be sealed, so the heavy metals will leach out, he said.
“Groundwater is a huge concern,” Eder said.
Ordinances
Johnne Smalley, a Town of Colfax resident, said the Town of Colfax has developed an ordinance that is based on the Town of Howard’s mine licensing ordinance.
The Town of Colfax’s ordinance “is tougher” than Howard’s. Attorneys have reviewed the ordinance and said it was a good ordinance, Smalley said.
The Town of Howard should trust their ordinance, she said.
Smalley said she was concerned, too, about dust particles from sand mining that can cause lung problems and other health problems.
David Foris also said the Howard Town Board should “stick to the ordinances.”
The Howard Town Board only “owes” the people of the township and not Northern Sands Wisconsin.
The proposed developer’s agreement “has more holes than my fishing net,” he said.
Structural supports
Gerald Eder, a lifelong resident of the Town of Howard, said he was “sitting in the middle” on the issue of frac sand mining.
Eder has worked in excavation and hauling and has worked on I-94 projects.
“I’ve been in hundreds of pits,” he said.
Eder wondered where the structural supports for the conveyor system would be located.
If the structural supports are located in the Town of Howard’s road right-of-way, what happens when the roads are slippery during the winter and a vehicle slides into the structural supports? Eder asked.
Will the Town of Howard be liable? Or will the landowner next to the right-of-way who has nothing to do with frac sand mining be liable? he asked.
And what about the groundwater? Eder asked.
The S&S mine in the Town of Howard was allowed to mine within five feet of the groundwater, but the water table moves up and down in any given year, he said.
Eder said he was “for the industry” but he has concerns.
The Albertville Valley sand mine will be 1,300 acres, and gravel pits are only 10 acres or 40 or 80 acres, Eder said.
Guarantee
The property value guarantee ensures residents they will receive the fair market value of their property plus $15,000, said Susan LaNou, Town of Howard resident.
Realtor fees are 6 percent of the home value, so on a property valued at $300,000, the realtor’s fee would be $18,000. Closing costs are 2.5 to 3.5 percent for total of $9,000, she said.
The $15,000 is only half of the money needed to sell the property, and that is not counting the actual moving costs, LaNou said.
People living within a half mile or a mile of the mine site also will be dealing with noise, dust and lights, but they have no property value guarantee, she said.
“It’s a nuisance suit in the making” LaNou said.
The Howard Town Board should “quit being so defeated,” she said.
NSW does not need to have a sand mine if the company cannot follow the law. People cannot have agreements with local law enforcement to not be arrested if they are drinking and driving, she said.
The well-being of the citizens should be a priority of the town board, and the board should follow the township’s ordinances, LaNou said.
“Would you want it out your backdoor, all for $15,000?” she asked.
LaNou said the statement she provided to the town board had been endorsed with 32 signatures.
Written comments
The Howard Town Board will continue to take written comments about the proposed developer’s agreement until Friday, December 7.
