EASTERN SANDOVAL CITIZENS ASSOCIATION
PRESS RELEASE
AUGUST 2020 SIGNPOST
BY: ESCA
WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN THE BLM RELEASE THE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR THE PLACITAS BUFFALO TRACT
The pending “Protect the Buffalo Track Legislation” is still in play awaiting congressional action, but in a parallel action the BLM, Bureau of Land Management, is once again hinting that they will release its plan for our Buffalo Track 3,000 plus acres within the near future. The 800-1,000-acre new gravel mine slated for the north east corner of the Buffalo Tract is still EXPECTED to be the preferred option. Even though Placitas turned in 17,000 comments opposed to it when the draft plan was released 12 years ago.
We EXPECT to get no advanced notice when the plan is released, just a notice in the Federal Register, and if we are lucky a Public Notice to the Sign Post. When it is released, we again get to comment but the window for the final comment period is unknown. We will apply for a longer public comment period than 30 days due to covid19, but we must be ready for a 30 day public comment period. With Covid-19 there will be NO opportunity for a community meeting, so we need to be organized to get comments in on time.
The Las Placitas Association along with the Eastern Sandoval Citizens Association will alert all our members to the start of the comment period with an email. And the homeowner’s associations network will be activated for 18 HOAs. Those notices will provide the how, when, and where to provide your comments. If possible, LPA will mail postcards to all.
The key point to cover in your comments is that the BLM does not take into consideration cumulative effects of dangerous airborne particulates when they award leases. Placitas already has a large active mine in the community and 3 additional mines surrounding it. We already have health concerning particulate air pollution, excessive water consumption, industrial noise, a thousand-acre decades old bare abandoned mining site, and degradation to property values in our residential community.
Any new mine must be considered ONLY WITH THE CUMULAIVE EFFECT that mine will contribute to our already overburdened community. This is an environmental justice issue. The BLM’s own mineral data shows there is a 60-mile swath of gravel from south of Santa Fe to south of Albuquerque. Much of that gravel deposit is in uninhabited areas. Further damaging our community for convenience of the gravel miners is untenable.
Find information about the mining conditions and the effect it has on Placitas with maps at the LPA and ES-CA.org web sites. An excellent white paper available on both sites; Land of Enchantment or Gravel details air pollution, water consumption, property value data and descriptions.