Russian River Gravel Mining

CONSERVATION GROUPS FILE LAWSUIT TO OVERTURN

COUNTY APPROVAL OF RUSSIAN RIVER GRAVEL MINING

Santa Rosa – Today (Nov.6, 2008) a coalition of community organizations representing conservationists, farmers, fishermen and recreationists filed a lawsuit in Sonoma County Superior Court to overturn the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors’ approval of Syar Industries’ proposal to resume terrace gravel mining of a 36-acre site west of the Russian River for three more years. Terrace gravel mining by Syar and other companies over the past 40 years has devastated the Middle Reach of the Russian River. Gravel mining has transformed this once verdant, fertile valley of vast vineyards, oak woodlands, and riparian forests towering above the Russian River into a barren landscape pockmarked with deep stagnant pools incapable of any form of agricultural production. Excavation of gravel pits, which reach 90 feet in depth, has substantially depleted the storage capacity of the Russian River’s Middle Reach aquifer. The resulting loss of agricultural production and aquifer storage capacity is permanent and irreparable.

The grounds for the lawsuit are that Sonoma County violated the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) by failing to consider alternative sources of gravel, such as Canadian aggregate shipped to the Port of Petaluma, and the untapped gravel deposits left as tailings from the extensive hydraulic and dredge gold mining that took place in the eastern Sacramento Valley during the 19^th Century. The lawsuit alleges that the County further violated CEQA by failing to fully disclose the adverse impacts of Syar’s mining project on the water quality of the Russian River and on groundwater in the area. The lawsuit also points out that the County failed to recirculate its Supplemental Environmental Impact Report on Syar’s project to address significant new documentation of the adverse health effects of diesel and other air emissions from Syar’s mining activity.

Syar’s gravel mining project had been approved by only a bare 3-2 majority of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors. The two Board members who voted against the project, Supervisors Mike Reilly and Valerie Brown, opposed it because the County had agreed in 1994 to end terrace gravel mining along the Russian River by April 2006. The Board’s approval of the project violates the commitment previously made by the County to move to less environmentally harmful sources of gravel.

Stephan Volker, attorney for the plaintiffs, explained that the lawsuit was only brought as a last resort. “These community organizations have pleaded with the Board of Supervisors for nearly a decade to persuade them to honor their solemn commitment to terminate terrace gravel mining along the Russian River because of its severe environmental impacts. Although two members of the Board of Supervisors agreed that the County must move to other less harmful and readily available sources of gravel, unfortunately the gravel mining industry still held sway over the other three supervisors,” explained Mr. Volker. “We hope that with this lawsuit, the County will finally take seriously the environmental community’s resolve to end this extremely damaging and completely unnecessary method of supplying the County with gravel. We look forward to the day when the County will work with us to develop the alternative sources of gravel that would spare the Russian River further damage and provide adequately for the County’s construction needs,” added Mr. Volker.

Plaintiff Westside Association to Save Agriculture (WASA) is an organization of farmers and residents that engages in public education and advocacy to promote the protection and restoration of agricultural lands and uses on the west side of the Middle Reach of the Russian River near Healdsburg.

Plaintiff Russian Riverkeeper was formed in 1993 to preserve, restore, and enhance the natural systems of the Russian River through citizen action, scientific research, and expert advocacy. It has hundreds of members residing throughout Sonoma County.

Plaintiff North Coast Rivers Alliance (NCRA) is an environmental organization that works to protect the Russian River and other rivers of California’s north coast from the adverse effects of excessive water diversions, ill-planned urban development, and harmful resource extraction, pollution, and other forms of degradation.

For more information regarding this Press Release:

Westside Association to Save Agriculture: Judith Olney (707) 473-9772, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it and Dennis Hill (707) 480-7133, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Russian Riverkeeper: Don McEnhill (707) 217-4762, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

North Coast Rivers Alliance: Frank Egger (415) 456-6356, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Attorney: Stephan Volker (510) 496-0600, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

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