Stop The Trucks: of Water Threats and Asphalt Plants
This week in particular, I have seen the intense round-the-clock dedication being made by citizens and officials alike on the gravel truck issue. I would like to personally thank everyone who is working diligently on this, and has donated to the cause. In particular, the Stop The Trucks coalition, led by Howard Smith, and Supervisor Steve Benett and his office have put a tremendous amount of time into protecting the Ojai Valley.
Read on for the latest...
Water Threats: the OVN posted a story on their blog regarding a new angle in the fight against the trucks:
"...members of the of Ventura County coalition brought up yet another serious environmental impact that was not properly addressed in the report: the extraction of groundwater. The Santa Barbara County mine projects would extract 55.24 acre-feet per year from the ground water basin during an average production year of 500,000 tons of gravel and 77.11 acre-feet per year, according to the EIR. Though Santa Barbara County has a policy of extracting no more than 31-acre feet per year, the mine project’s expected extraction significantly exceeds that threshold."
Asphalt Plants: Howard Smith sent out an open email:
There is a new asphalt plant opening in Santa Paula that will need gravel...The immediate threat to Ojai is this: If any of the mines in the Cuyama Valley contract with this new plant, there are no known prohibitions on those trucks coming down 33, turning left at the "Y"; driving through downtown, the East End and Upper Ojai on their way to Santa Paula.
As proposed now almost six hundred gravel trucks a day could be coming through the Ojai Valley, seven days a week, 24 hours a day, That’s one truck every 3-5 minutes cruising down Route 33 or cutting through downtown Ojai on their way to Santa Paula.In addition to all of the other problems we've been discussing for months of air quality, safety, traffic and economic impact, imagine a night at the Ojai Music Festival, a day at the tennis tournament, or a round of golf played to the sounds and smells of an endless wall of gravel trucks.
Your neighbors in the "Stop the Trucks" coalition have brought on board great legal help. We need your financial support if we are to save Ojai.
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