12/23/12

Letter to The City and Board of Trustees | Don't Trash Carbondale

Don't Trash Carbondale

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Letter to The City and Board of Trustees

April 3, 2011 TOWN HALL Town of Carbondale 511 Colorado Ave. Carbondale, CO 81623 (970) 963-2733 (970) 963-9140 - FAX Stacey Patch Bernot, Mayor John Fouldrod, Trustee Pam Zentmyer, Trustee John Hoffmann, Trustee Ed Cortez, Trustee Frosty Merriott, Trustee Elizabeth Murphy, Trustee Janet Buck, Staff Re: Proposed Solid Waste Transfer Station and Recycling Center at the Mid-Continent Mine Building Dear Carbondale Mayor and Board of Trustees: My name is Mitch Knutson and I represent a rapidly growing coalition called Dont Trash Carbondale. Our coalition has swelled to over 100 citizens. This coalition was formed because we adamantly oppose the proposed Solid Waste Transfer Station and Recycling Center at the old Mid-Continent Mine Building. We believe if this materializes it could hurt the town of Carbondale beyond repair. To learn more about our coalition, go to www.donttrashcarbondale.com. Currently IRMW-LLC is applying for a zone text amendment from Garfield County to change the application requirements of a Solid Waste Transfer Station and a Recycling Center to a Use by Right. The current requirements would require a Limited Impact Review and a Major Impact Review, respectfully. We think it is wrong to allow a major industrial usage at this site, in such close proximity to residential properties and public spaces, without public input and without knowledge of how it will affect the health, safety and well being of the citizens who live and travel in this part of the Roaring Fork Valley. In essence, what IRMW-LLC is asking for is a FREE PASS and granted a Use by Right, thus eliminating the review process and public scrutiny. Therefore, we respectfully request that you all vote to deny the application or at a bare minimum request that the current Impact Reviews be implemented before making any decisions that could adversely affect Carbondales citizens.

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Carbondale Mayor and Board of Trustees stand by it's citizens.

April 6, 2011- Read the town's

letter to the Garfield County Board of Commissioners.

READ THE LETTER HERE

What are the citizens concerns?

The citizens have major concerns about this proposal. It could affect the health and safety of the local community and will diminish the values of the surrounding residential properties for the following reasons:

FIRE HAZARD?
This Recycling Center fire was out of control in 7 minutes. The Catherines Store Road Fire two years ago was a catastrophic fire across the road from the planned building site. Why impose this risk on us again?

The environmental and health issues this proposal presents could be significant. The byproduct of handling garbage is air, water and ground pollution not to mention increased rodents and other wildlife, including bears. What happens if our well water gets contaminated? The static level of our wells is six feet. Seeping contaminants would not have to travel far to pollute the ground water. How will we deal with this situation if it occurs? What kind of air particles will we be breathing in kicked up from the sites trucks and heavy equipment? How can we be assured that no toxic materials will be recycled at this site and that they will not be released into the air or ground water? What about hazardous materials that are dropped off by customers, including batteries, electronic components, solvents, lead paints, old tires and the like! These are not allowed in dumps and will most likely be stored at the facility, creating a potential hazardous waste site! What happens to melting snow or rain run-off as it washes down the mountain side picking up contaminants as it goes and then enters the ditch system? This will end up in the Roaring Fork River potentially damaging a Gold Medal fishery. What about the blown trash that will end up on residential properties and along the ditches and hillside surrounding this site? This will create a major eyesore. Who will pick up the garbage?

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donttrashcarbondale.org/important-documents/letter-to-the-city-and-boar.html

12/23/12

Letter to The City and Board of Trustees | Don't Trash Carbondale Don't Trash Carbondale wants proposal junked
Plan is to transform coalprocessing site into solid waste transfer facility, recycling center

We are very concerned about the type of health risks that we could be individually exposed to!

Noise Pollution from trucks, heavy equipment, sorters, crushers, etc. will reverberate off the mountain side into the valley. Our valley is beautiful, quiet and peaceful. This will negatively impact the valley forever, if this project goes forward.

Odor Without a doubt, fou l odors and smells will be generated by this site. Prevailing winds will carry the smell over the valley, rodeo grounds and Rio Grande bike path and into the town of Carbondale adversely affecting the communitys serenity and quality of life.
READ THE ARTICLE

Waste hauler hopes to

Traffic levels will increase significantly. This includes garbage trucks, dump trucks and semi-trailers on County Road 100 and Snowmass Dr., both residential areas, adding to airborne pollution and noise. The subsequent congestion on County Road 100 and Snowmass Dr. will have an adverse effect on the safety of our neighborhoods. County Road 100 and Snowmass Dr. were not built for this kind of traffic. What condition will the road be in with all this heavy industrial usage?

build recycling facility near Carbondale

A Silt waste hauling company is seek ing approval from the Garfield County Planning Commission to open up a solidwaste transfer station and recycling facility just east of Carbondale.

Safety concerns become an issue if this proposal is approved. The Rio Grande bike path runs directly in front of the site. Traffic turning into and out of the site increases the risk for accidents and negates the benefit of having a bike path altogether due to safety concerns. Some bikers may even start using County Road 100 again because of all the inconvenience of using the bike path. Risk of fire - A potential fire at this site is a major safety concern. These facilities are prone to fires starting not only from the equipment being used, but within the trash itself. We believe that it would be very difficult for the local fire department to handle a large fire in a facility such as this. Then, there is the exposure issue of the surrounding environment (trees, brush, etc.). These fires are difficult to extinguish. There are no fire hydrants in the area. The likelihood of a fire at this site is a reality. We have already been through one major fire and do not relish the thought of another!

READ THE ARTICLE

WHAT'S AT STAKE?
Here is the proposed facility location.

Other Concerns: To approve this area for residential development and then, after the fact, approve it (with a Use by Right) for heavy industrial usage is inconsistent with the earlier approvals for residential zoning. If this facility is approved, it will undoubtedly grow and expand as it seeks to make more money and meet the changing demands of the recycling industry? What will it look like in 10 or 20 years? How much waste will be stored outside because there is not enough room inside? The word recycling is really a code for DUMP! Carbondale will become a magnet for other cities garbage and unwanted and potentially hazardous materials. Is this the best place to locate a dump? What impact could this have on our environment and our quality of life? What kind of impact will this have on the Carbondale rodeo and bike path? Is this what Carbondale wants to be known for? It is not what we know, but what we dont know that concerns the local citizens. Property Values Property values will undoubtedly be reduced if this facility starts looking, smelling and acting like a dump. For Garfield County, this means lower property values and lower property taxes for the county, thus negating any economic benefits the facility may create.
C LIC K FOR LARGER IMAGE

In summary, as our elected Carbondale officials, we feel you all have a responsibility to the Carbondale citizens to look out for our best interests. Allowing the Garfield County Commissioner to grant IRMW-LLC a Use by Right for these facilities and circumventing the current Impact Review studies would be irresponsible to the citizens of Carbondale. Therefore, we again respectfully request that you all vote to deny this application. This can be achieved by writing another letter to the Garfield County Commissioners stating your disapproval of this proposal. This is exactly what Matt Sturgeon (Assistant City Manager and Planning Director) did in Rifle. You have this letter in your information packet. A NO vote by the Carbondale elected officials will go a long way towards defeating this measure. At a minimum, please vote for the full Impact Reviews to be completed. Doing so allows the Garfield County Commissioners and other elected officials the ability to make an informed responsible decision that is beneficial to the Carbondale community. It is our hope that you all fall on the right side of this issue. We appreciate what each of has done for our community! Carbondale is listed as One of the best cities to live in. We believe this is no accident. Carbondale has this designation because of the actions and visions the Mayor and the Board of Trustees have accomplished. We understand that your goals are to make Carbondale a wonderful town and a great place to live. Having a dump directly outside of our city limits would hurt this standing. It is difficult to understand the upside of this proposal. We certainly understand the down side, as outlined above. In the end, we believe that once the facts are on the table, you folks will fall on the side of "what is right" for our awesome town. We look forward to the meeting Tuesday night.

donttrashcarbondale.org/important-documents/letter-to-the-city-and-boar.html

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12/23/12

Letter to The City and Board of Trustees | Don't Trash Carbondale

Again, we appreciate the opportunity to voice our concerns and are grateful that you all would listen! If any of you would like to speak to me directly, I can be reached at 303-618-3525 or email at mitchnknutson@msn.com.

Thank you in advance for your consideration regarding this very important issue!

Sincerely, Mitch Knutson, Founding Member of the Dont Trash Carbondale coalition

Don't Trash Carbondale 2011 CONTACT

donttrashcarbondale.org/important-documents/letter-to-the-city-and-boar.html

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