As a result of Roper Construction's appeal (permit request number 9295) because of the New Mexico Environment Department's denials at two levels, the Environment Improvement Board has scheduled a Public Hearing for October 18, 19, and 20, 2022. No other public details have been released at this time although the
EIB is now receiving opposition communication through Pam Jones at email: pamela.jones@state.nm.us or phone at 505 660 4305 or postal hard copy to Pam Jones, Hearing Clerk, NMED, 1190 St. Francis Drive, Santa Fe, NM 87505. Re-sending opposition letters that were received by NMED for the February Public Hearing will be accepted with any updates deemed appropriate by the writer.
HERE'S one letter: Reference: AQBP-Roper-AltoCBP-Permit Application Roper Construction’s Alto CBP
As homeowners in the Sun Valley Subdivision located in Alto, NM, we were shocked to hear about the Roper Construction plan to build a concrete batch plant, an obviously industrial facility, in our predominantly residential area. This is a devastating prospect! The strong winds we receive here will bring suffocating air pollutants throughout the area and I (Patsy) am exceptionally allergic to any and all air pollutants and experience the chronic condition of asthma as a result. (Please note that the letter you received recently from the Ruidoso Board of Realtors contains an excellent scientific discussion of the negative impact this type of proposed business will undoubtedly have on the quality of air in our community.) Also, if this application is approved, then the door is open to any number of other industrial businesses which could have the same type of impact(s) on our air quality. In this day and age of climate control, it seems to us that the State of New Mexico should be highly concerned as to the quality of the air in our local communities, especially those such as Alto which is a rural mountain community which thrives on the necessity of clean air for its primary commodities of tourism and the development of retirement and second home communities. Alto is NOT an industrialized area as most New Mexico as well as many Texas residents know and appreciate!
The many people with homes and businesses along Hwy 220 and throughout this entire area have extreme concerns as to what the construction of this plant would mean for everyone. Two of the major concerns are:
1. proven negative health issues related to particulate matter in the air;
2. degraded air quality and great increase in dust, which would also be detrimental to horses and other livestock as well as humans.
In closing, there seem to be no valid reasons for allowing this plant to be built in what is essentially a residential area dependent on retirees and tourism for its livelihood and survival. Surely there is plenty of space elsewhere that is more appropriate for an industrial business that would not adversely impact so many people. We would like to request in the strongest terms possible, that the application for a new air quality permit (or any permit) for the construction of a concrete batch plant at the above-referenced location by Roper Construction be DENIED!
In order for us to remain continually informed of the status of this issue in a timely manner, please add our names to the list for notification of any and all action(s) on this application. We also request that there be a public hearing on this matter.
Thank you for your time and attention to this most important matter.
HERE'S another letter one of the neighbors wrote in opposition asking that Roper' s permit be denied. It denotes some of the affects of a near-by Cement Plant:
" I most vociferously object to the permitting of this cement plant on the following grounds:
"1. Air quality. At nearly 7500 feet, we enjoy nearly pristine air. Particulate matter ejected by a cement plant will destroy this. As I understood from one of the attendees, a children's church camp located nearby the proposed site was not mentioned in Roper's application and should have been for air quality purposes vis a vis children. Therefore, his application should be rejected for incorrect, misleading information.
"2. Water quality. Ours is a rural, residential neighborhood of homes ranging from simple summer cabins to high-end estates and everything in between. We all draw our water from the same aquifer. As stated by one of the attendees, approximately 32 - 39 gallons of water are used to make one cubic yard of cement. Roper has been quoted he wants to produce several thousands of yards per year. Obviously, he will suck the water table dry.
In addition, there is the issue of runoff from production, as well as runoff from washing the trucks, equipment, etc. This chemically polluted water will enter the water table, contaminating downstream sources. Apparently this issue is not addressed in his application, therefore it should be rejected.
"3. Road destruction. Cement trucks are not light vehicles. Roper's application did not address the destruction of trucks running 24/7 on County Road 220 and NM 48. Therefore his application should be rejected.
"4. Quality of life. Cement plants are not quiet factories. They create noise, smoke and odor. Again, ours is a quiet residential neighborhood whose residents chose to live surrounded by the sounds of birds, bees, bellowing elk, chattering squirrels and the laughter of children and barking of dogs. We do not want to live with 24/7 odor and noise. Roper's application should be rejected for destroying our way of life.
"In conclusion, reject Roper's application now. His plant, in the middle of an unzoned "out in the county" residential area, will destroy life as we know it."
HERE'S another letter:
This email is my protest to the proposed concrete facility at Hwy 48 and Hwy 220 in Alto, New Mexico.
I have lived here 26 years. First off - this location is part of the Billy the Kid Scenic Byway.
One of my jobs at the Billy the Kid Visitor Center was to direct tourists to scenic places in Lincoln County.
Needless to say - the byway was my first suggestion because of all the historic towns/museums that it leads
people to, plus the scenery is just beautiful. A smoke/dust bellowing unsightly concrete manufacturer has no place being
located on this SCENIC byway.
We moved here for the quality of life - clean air, clean water, wildlife, quietness, access to National Forest and Wilderness.
As I understand, this plant is only 1.3 miles from the White Mountain Wilderness area. Is there not a Wilderness Area "rule" with the National Forest that heavy construction manufacturing cannot be within
3 miles of a Wilderness area?
Every day, I pass by this planned location on the way to my part-time job at Spencer Theater. With all the rain, the property
is green and beautiful, a statement to rural living and openness. So in the future am I to fight heavy truck traffic and look at a disgusting plant/ rock crusher, bellowing out dust and who knows what else? What about the
church camp/school nearby? Besides the fact the kids will get full brunt of the toxic chemicals and dust in the air, the camp will be bombarded with the NOISE.
Ah, the noise. I live on the opposite side of Hwy 48, up on the mountainside. The peace and quiet in the mornings is
relished and cherished. Yes, I hear the occasional motorcycle ripping loudly down the highway and maybe a truck
squealing its brakes, but otherwise it is heaven here. This valley is like living in a bowl though and
the noise travels, especially with the loss of so many trees to bark beetles. Our noise cushioning has disappeared.
I can hear hail falling on Angus Hill and know more than likely it is headed up the mountain towards my house and
garden.
My next protest is to the planned operating hours from 3am to 9 pm on Ropers application. So, who gives a damn about
the New Mexico Night Skies? We will see these glaring lights starting at 3 am and not to speak of, again, the
noise at that hour? When The Night Skies law came out, I reached out to the neighborhood by writing in the Sun Valley Water
Newsletter & Blog that it would behoove them to turn off their lights that stay on all night, to have motion sensor lights instead,
because the night sky here is pretty much unbeatable.
Sun Valley Water and Sanitation District - I've been their bookkeeper for 25 years. I deal with the Office of the State Engineer
reporting well readings. We are monitored to make sure we do not go over our allocated Water Rights, even though our rights
from 1965 are lower in the priority appropriation. I understand Roper plans on producing 500,000 yards of concrete a year. It takes
39 gallons to make one yard of concrete, so that means, roughly calculated, he plans to use 49 acre feet of water PER year.
Can the aquifer in this valley handle this consumption? Or will we have drawdown, just like what happened when the
Village of Ruidoso put wells all along Eagle Creek, causing many property owners to lose their wells. NO, this is unacceptable.
Water quality issue. Roper does not address what he plans to do with waste water from cleaning the cement trucks daily. Is he
to use Phosphoric acid and trisodium phosphate? Are these chemicals going to find their way into Little Creek and the ground
water and eventually end up in our drinking water and in the formations of Snowy River Cave? Will it become a Superfund Site
like the gold mining that used arsenic and the uranium mining in Colorado?
Lastly, Roper's application to NMED uses a wind model created by Holloman Airforce Base 16 years ago. We do not have
similar terrain to Holloman. Secondly, the wind blows a lot of the time and mainly from the Southwest. But during this monsoon
season, the wind hasn't been blowing. The sky is hazy from all the smoke coming from fires in other states. Is all the dust and
chemicals going to just hoover in our valley - trapped by the Sacramento Mountains and the Capitan Mountains?
My goodness - too many questions unanswered. Please take my heartfelt concerns into consideration when hopefully denying
Ropers application.
