Update - because of SNOW forecast - the AltoCEP meeting changed to Thursday, Feb. 3, 6:30 ALG&CC pavilion

Important! Feb 2 Community Meeting Moved to Thursday Feb 3

Due to the forecast snowfall starting Tuesday night, which is predicted to last until Thursday morning, we have decided to postpone the AltoCEP public meeting by 24 hours. We will now meet one day later Thursday Feb 3 at 6:30pm at the Alto Lakes Golf & Country Club Pavilion.

Attorney Tom Hnasko will be on-line via Zoom to answer questions regarding the upcoming NMED Public Hearing regarding the proposed concrete batch plant. Additionally we will provide guidance for the submission of written comments and for making verbal comments during the hearing.

You may also participate via Zoom or Audio Only via conference call. In the event that the weather precludes meeting at Alto Lakes, we will proceed using Zoom only. Please check your email, altocep.org or the Alto CEP Facebook page on the day of the meeting for the latest status.

To participate via Zoom click the link below to be taken directly to the meeting. If you do not have Zoom installed on your computer it can be automatically installed using this link by clicking YES when prompted.

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87339661922?pwd=Z0svVE1ZZUpzeWYycFNqbEExSUs2UT09

Alternatively, you may call-in from any phone for audio only participation.

Audio Only call in line: 346-248-7799 When prompted enter:

Zoom Meeting ID: 87339661922#

When prompted press # again

Then when prompted enter the meeting Passcode: 851648#

We hope to see you Thursday evening, either in person or on-line!

Alto CEP Public Meeting Wed., Feb 2, 2022, @ 6:30 at Alto Lakes Golf & CC to prepare for NMED Air Quality Public Hearing Feb 9

Alto Coalition for Environmental Preservation(AltoCEP) Public Meeting

Wednesday February 2, 2022

Preparing for the NMED Public Hearing on the Proposed Concrete Batch Plant

Please join the AltoCEP Leadership at 6:30pm on Wednesday February 2, 2022 at the Alto Lakes Golf & Country Club Pavilion to discuss preparations for the upcoming NMED Public Hearing on the proposed concrete batch plant (CBP).

We will discuss what to expect in the hearing and how best to prepare and submit your personal written and verbal comments. We will provide guidance on how to present your views and arguments most effectively and avoid redundancy with other commentors.

NMED administrative procedures governing the Public Hearing require that all interested persons “…be given a reasonable chance to submit data, views or arguments orally or in writing…”. Once submitted these comments become part of NMED’s administrative record of the application.

Additionally, we will discuss the status of our other legal objections to the proposed CBP.

submitting comments for Feb 9 Public Hearing by NMED-Air Quality

Submit Comments to: https://nmed.commentinput.com/?id=KZx2A

Example of comments submitted from one of your neighbors.

Roper Construction

My property is less than 1 mile from the Proposed Roper Construction Batch Plant.

I have been a resident of Lincoln for greater than 30 years.

I have diagnosed COPD Chronic Obstructive Plumonary Disease.

As an educated, degreed physician, I am uniquely knowledgeable of the documented medical treatise that state "Crystalline Silica" causes both irreparable damage to the lungs and lung CANCER. Evidenced by this article by the National Institutes of Health, https://ntp.niehs.nih.gov › ntp › roc › content › profiles › silica.pdf

This article calls crystalline a carcinogen and/or causes respiratory destruction, COPD, emphesema, etc.

The proposal to spray water, night and day to settle the silica is beyond ludicrous. It will not work. If the wind blows (which is does daily with gusts to 70-80 mph) the water spray is a waste of good irreplaceable water.

And speaking of water (my property has a well for drinking water), Spraying water into the air does nothing but further deplete the water table and washes all the silica into the air and ground water table.

The Silica will coat the plants, poison the wildlife, poison the people, poison the air and poison the water table. AND, what about the jobs and people that will work there. Who is to care for them 5- 10-20 years down the road.

This entire proposal by Roper Construction is wrong for all the reasons: ruins the air and ruins the water and destroys the lives of people.

Submit in writing your opposition to the Roper concrete batch plant

Go to this website, fill out the form and give your comments. The MORE who submit comment, the BETTER!

https://nmed.commentinput.com/?id=KZx2A

We NEED you to voice your concerns and opposition.

We NEED you to be present at the Public Hearing, Feb 9, whether in person or by WebEx.

We NEED to show that we have the population of Alto behind the efforts to stop this concrete batch plant from being built.

We need money to pay for environmental lawyer and the experts compiling techincal testimony for the public hearing. Whatever you can do to help is GREATLY appreciated. You're not just helping this tireless group of individuals trying to stop this plant from being built. You're helping yourself - the air you breathe, the beauty of your homestead (and it's property value), the wildlife & just every reason why you chose Alto.

Go to AltoCEP.org to donate and for more information.

Let's STOP this concrete batch plant cold in its tracks. It is NOT wanted here.

Details: Public Hearing. The link to join the virtual hearing will be posted online in the NMED Calendar at www.env.nm.gov/events-calendar/. Go to the start date of the hearing and click on the entry about this hearing for the link to join and links to other information. For members of the public who do not have access to an internet connection or prefer to attend the hearing at a physical location, the Department has reserved Traylor Gym at Capitan Municipal Schools located at 519 Smokey Bear Boulevard, Capitan, NM 88316. Also, the Ruidoso Convention Center has become a secondary site for the meeting. Members of the public can go to either location during the hearing to view and participate in the virtual hearing.

Look for this at www.env.nm.gov/events-calendar/

Public Hearing before the Secretary: Roper Construction

WebEx: nmed-oit.webex.com…

Wed, Feb 9, 9am – 6pm

“Public notices of this hearing and other hearings are posted on the NMED Public Notices page.”

“Testimony and other documents associated with the hearing will be posted on the NMED Docketed Matters…

Here is my submission for the public hearing, knowing it needed to specifically be ONLY about Air Quality and NONE of the other issues of why this concrete batch plant is a bad idea.

Position: OPPOSE the issuing of this permit

The proposed Alto Concrete Batch Plant is an unwanted impediment to the air quality we have in Alto, located in the Southern Mountains of New Mexico. I moved here 27 years ago from the mountains in Colorado specifically to continue living where the air quality is superior and because the beauty of the area rivaled my previous Colorado location, but the houses here were affordable.

The dust and caustic chemicals this plant will spew into the air will dramatically alter the health of the individuals who live here, most of whom are elderly and many who already have lung issues. I had a heart attack 14 years ago at the age of 50 and my breathing capabilities have been limited since that occurrence, even after rehabilitation. So, at this high altitude the presence of caustic chemicals and dust in the air will dramatically further hinder my breathing capabilities.

As I understand, only a N95 mask will protect you from the aerosols created by the concrete batch plant, so even if/when Covid 19 ends, this batch plant will force us to continuing wearing masks, except now we will be (self)regulated to wear masks inside our homes as well as outdoors to protect ourselves to continue breathing without harming our lungs.

Info on NMED Air Quality FAQ link to the application specifically says "Primary standards provide public health protection, including protecting the health of "sensitive" populations such as asthmatics, children, and the elderly. Secondary standards provide public welfare protection, including protection against decreased visibility and damage to animals, crops, vegetation, and buildings."

There is a church camp less that 1 mile from the proposed plant, which Roper did not identify in his application nor in any of his resubmissions. Pls see this information copied from application below:

"Application A-9295-Section16v2_12_29_21.pd 16J: Sensitive Areas:

Are there schools or hospitals or other sensitive areas near the facility? If so describe below. This information is optional (and purposely undefined) but may help determine issues related to public notice. Yes☐ No☒ "

Plus Roper says the public is not against his plant.

"A-9295-Section16v2_12_29_21.pd J16: Sensitive Areas - #3 the modeling review process may need to be accelerated if there is a public hearing. Are there likely to be public comments opposing the permit application? Yes☐ No☒ "

Please note that none of Roper's application can be trusted to be truthful.

I oppose this plant and respectively request you deny the application.

Public Hearing Feb 9, 10, 11 - Roper Concrete Batch Plant

Secondary Public Participation Location for the NMED Public Hearings

on the Proposed Alto Concrete Batch Plant

For the convenience of Alto-Ruidoso area residents, the Alto Coalition for Environmental Preservation (AltoCEP) has reserved the Ruidoso Convention Center as a secondary public participation location for the New Mexico Environment Department Air Quality Bureau (NMED AQB) virtual public hearing regarding the air quality permit application for the proposed Alto Concrete Batch plant.

The hearing will be held virtually, using the WebEx platform, and is scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m. MST on February 9, 2022 and will continue the next two days as needed. Two public participation locations are being provided for those who do not have the capability to participate, or prefer not to participate, in the hearing through their own internet capabilities using the WebEx platform.

Participants at the Ruidoso Convention Center will be able to view the Hearing in its entirety on a large video projection screen and monitor all verbal discussions in the Hearing. Additionally, participants at the Ruidoso Convention Center will be able to provide their verbal general comment at the hearing on February 9, 2022 at 12:00 PM and 5:00 PM. If consecutive days are needed for the Technical Testimony, verbal general comments will be accepted at 9:00 AM, 12:00 PM, and 5:00 PM on those days. Members of the public will have up to five (5) minutes to offer general comment. Public commenters may offer testimony once during the hearing; written comment is unlimited. Members of the public who wish to provide general comment are encouraged to submit their comments in writing to the Hearing Clerk Madai Corral at: Madai.Corral@state.nm.us either before or during the hearing.

The Ruidoso Convention Center has been reserved as a secondary public viewing location exclusively through private donations by members of the AltoCEP. Admission and participation are free-of-charge. Funding from NMED has not been used for the reservation or use of the facility. NMED personnel will not be present at the Ruidoso Convention Center.

The official public participation location for this hearing remains the Traylor Gym at Capitan Municipal Schools located at 519 Smokey Bear Boulevard, Capitan, NM 88316. As with the Ruidoso Convention Center, participants at this location will be able to view the proceedings and participate in the verbal general comments as noted above. NMED personnel will be on hand at this location to assist with public participation.

Members of the public who do wish to participate in the hearing using their own internet and WebEx capabilities may do so through this link: www.env.nm.gov/events-calendar/ Go to the start date of the hearing and click on the entry about this hearing for the link to join and links to other information. Hearing viewing and verbal comment will be available in the same manner as described above.

Hearing for Public Feb 9, 10, 11 - Roper Concrete Batch Plant

See below the email received on hearing. Go to notice for more information on how to attend in person, how to get link to attend virtually, how to sign up to speak or to submit written oppostion for hearing. An entry of appearance must be submitted before January 19, 2022.

From: Saikrishnan, Deepika, NMENV

Date: Mon, Jan 3, 2022 at 4:07 PM

Subject: Notice of Hearing – February 9, 2022 for Roper Construction Inc's -Alto Concrete Batch Plant (9295)

Dear Interested Party:

The New Mexico Environment Department announces a virtual public hearing at 9.00 am on February 9, 2022, to take evidence on the application for air quality construction permit for the Alto Concrete Batch Plant submitted by Roper Construction Inc.

Below is the Notices of Hearing. Please read these to find information about the hearing and steps for public participation.

These Notices of Hearing, along with other information are available for your review on NMED’s public notice website under the County dropdown, in the link with the name of the facility. The proposed facility would be in Lincoln County. NMED’s public notice website is located at: https://www.env.nm.gov/public-notices/ .

Deepika Saikrishnan

Environmental Scientist

Permitting -Technical Services

NM Environment Department – Air Quality Bureau

525 Camino de los Marquez, Suite 1

Santa Fe, NM 87505

505-629-3593

Alto Batch Plant Local Hearing Feb 9-11, 2022

By altocep.org January 4, 2022

If you wrote to Deepika Saikrishnan at NMED about opposing the Roper Batch Plant, you probably received the notice quoted below in its entirety.

If not, and you were looking forward to attending a local hearing to bureaucratically adjudicate the matter, you better arrive early because the venue is the Traylor Gym at Capitan Public School. It’s a nice gym but not very large.

The hearing will also be presented/conducted virtually using WEBEX.

STATE OF NEW MEXICO BEFORE THE SECRETARY OF ENVIRONMENT IN THE MATTER OF THE PERMIT APPLICATION OF

ROPER CONSTRUCTION, INC. FOR AIR QUALITY PERMIT NO. 9295 ALTO CONCRETE BATCH PLANT AQB 21-57 (P)

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

The New Mexico Environment Department (“NMED”) announces a virtual public hearing to take evidence on an air quality construction permit application for Roper Construction, Inc.’s Alto Concrete Batch Plant pursuant to the New Mexico Air Quality Control Act, NMSA 1978, §§ 74-2-1 et seq., and Section 206 of 20.2.72 NMAC – Construction Permits. The hearing will be held virtually via the WebEx platform and at a physical location, to begin at 9:00 a.m. MST on February 9, 2022 and will continue on consecutive days as needed. The link to join the virtual hearing will be posted online in the NMED Calendar at www.env.nm.gov/events-calendar/. Go to the start date of the hearing and click on the entry about this hearing for the link to join and links to other information. For members of the public who do not have access to an internet connection or prefer to attend the hearing at a physical location, the Department has reserved Traylor Gym at Capitan Municipal Schools located at 519 Smokey Bear Boulevard, Capitan, NM 88316. Members of the public can go to this location during the hearing to view and participate in the virtual hearing.

The Hearing Officer will accept non-technical or general public comment either in writing or verbally. Members of the public who wish to provide general comment are encouraged to submit their comments in writing to the Hearing Clerk Madai Corral at Madai.Corral@state.nm.us either before or during the hearing. Verbal general comment will be accepted at the hearing on February 9, 2022 at 12:00 PM and 5:00 PM. If consecutive days are needed for the Technical Testimony, verbal general comments will be accepted at 9:00 AM, 12:00 PM, and 5:00 PM on those days. Members of the public will have up to five (5) minutes to offer general comment. Public commenters may offer testimony once during the hearing; written comment is unlimited. The hearing will be conducted in accordance with the Environment Department Permitting Procedures, 20.1.4 NMAC, the procedures in Air Quality Construction Permits, 20.2.72 NMAC, and other applicable hearing procedures.

The proposed Alto Concrete Batch Plant is a 125 yd3/hour concrete batch plant including an aggregate feed hopper, aggregate feed hopper conveyor, 4-bin aggregate bin, aggregate weigh batcher with conveyor, cement/fly ash split silo with screw conveyors and dust collectors, cement/fly ash batcher and concrete truck loading area with central dust control system to control fugitive dust from the truck loading area and ceme nt/fly ash batcher, aggregate and sand storage piles, and three heaters (0.19 MMBtu/h each). This Facility would limit production to 500,000 yd3/year. Alto Concrete Batch Plant is proposed to be located approximately 0.35 miles east of the intersection of Highways 48 and 220 north of Ruidoso, NM at 135 New Mexico Highway 220, Alto NM 88312 in Lincoln County. Alto Concrete Batch Plant is owned and operated by Roper Construction, Inc. The mailing address for Roper Construction Inc. is P.O. Box 969, Alto, New Mexico, 88312.

For the permit application, the NMED Air Quality Bureau (“AQB”) has reviewed the application, including emission rates, and concluded that operation of the facility will comply with applicable requirements and not cause or contribute to an exceedance of federal and state ambient air quality standards if conducted in accordance with the Department’s draft permit conditions.

1 Any person may review the permit application, associated documents, and the draft permit on NMED’s public notice website under the Lincoln County dropdown, in the section for Roper Construction Inc. NMED’s public notice website is at www.env.nm.gov/public-notices/.

For further information or a copy of the draft permit, contact Deepika Saikrishnan at the New Mexico Environment Department Air Quality Bureau at (505) 629-3593, Deepika.Saikrishnan@state.nm.us, or the Air Quality Bureau Office located at 525 Camino de los Marquez Suite 1, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87505.

ENTRY OF APPEARANCE

Any person who wishes to be a party in this proceeding must file with the Hearing Clerk at the below address a Statement of Intent or an Entry of Appearance on or before January 19, 2022. A timely Statement of Intent to Submit Technical Testimony shall be considered an Entry of Appearance.

The Entry of Appearance must contain the following information: Person: Identify the person filing the entry of appearance; and Position:

State whether the person filing the entry of appearance supports or opposes issuance of the permit.

A person’s failure to file a timely Statement of Intent or Entry of Appearance substantially complying with these requirements shall preclude the person from becoming a party but shall not preclude a person from presenting written or oral non-technical public comments.

TECHNICAL TESTIMONY

Any person who intends to present technical evidence or testimony at the public hearing must file a Statement of Intent to Present Technical Testimony with the Hearing Clerk on or before January 19, 2022 and serve an electronic copy of the foregoing on all other parties. Rebuttal NOIs shall be pre-filed with the Hearing Clerk and served on all other parties on or before February 2, 2022. The Statement of Intent and rebuttal NOIs must be filed with the Hearing Clerk at the following address:

Pamela Jones

Hearing Clerk

New Mexico Environment Department

1190 St. Francis Drive

P.O. Box 5469

Santa Fe, New Mexico 87502

(505) 660-4305

Pamela.Jones@state.nm.us

The Statement of Intent to Present Technical Testimony shall:

(i) identify the person filing the statement;

(ii) state whether the person filing the statement supports or opposes the Draft Permit, Application, or Petition;

(iii) identify each witness, including name, address, affiliation(s), and educational and work background;

(iv) estimate the length of the direct testimony of each witness;

(v) identify all exhibits which are part of the Record Proper and, for exhibits not part of the Record Proper, attach a copy;

(vi) list or make available all technical materials relied upon by each witness in making statement of technical of fact or opinion contained in his or her direct testimony; and

(vii) attach a summary of the testimony of each witness, stating any opinion(s) to be offered by such witness, and an explanation of the basis for such opinion(s).

Failure to file a timely and complete Statement of Intent will preclude a person from presenting technical evidence or testimony sought to be offered. All exhibits must be properly marked to be accepted, including the party name and exhibit number on the top or bottom of the exhibit, and include consecutively numbered pages.

ARRANGEMENTS FOR PERSONS REQUIRING AID TO PARTICIPATE

A Spanish interpreter will be present for the virtual hearing. If any person requires assistance, another type of interpreter, or auxiliary aid to participate in the hearing, please contact Deepika Saikrishnan at the New Mexico Environment Department Air Quality Bureau 15 days prior to the hearing date at (505) 629-3593, Deepika.Saikrishnan@state.nm.us, or the Air Quality Bureau Office located at 525 Camino de los Marquez Suite 1, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87505 by January 19, 2022. TDD or TDY users may access this number via the New Mexico Relay Network at 1-800-659-8331.

NOTICE OF NON-DISCRIMINATION

NMED does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, age or sex in the administration of its programs or activities, as required by applicable laws and regulations. NMED is responsible for coordination of compliance efforts and receipt of inquiries concerning non-discrimination requirements implemented by 40 C.F.R. Part 7, including Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, and Section 13 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972. If you have any questions about this notice or any of NMED’s non-discrimination programs, policies or procedures, or if you believe that you have been discriminated against with respect to a NMED program or activity, you may contact: Kathryn Becker, Non-Discrimination Coordinator, NMED, 1190 St. Francis Dr., Suite N4050, P.O.Box 5469, Santa Fe, NM 87502, (505) 827-2855, nd.coordinator@state.nm.us. You may also visit our website at https://www.env.nm.gov/non-employee-discrimination-complaint-page/ to learn how and where to file a complaint of discrimination Deepika.saikrishnan@state.nm.us

www.env.nm.gov

Moisture in December 2021