Support Liberty Quarry - 2006

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8/18/06, The Californian

Minority using scare tactics on quarry

Larry Lepley's letter of Aug. 15, supporting the proposed Liberty Quarry was a breath of fresh air, no pun intended. Larry understands the significance and benefits of the rock quarry and isn't afraid to say so.

Most complainers have tried to alarm us about imaginary health risks caused by dust, a virtual non-issue. You'd think they'd do their homework and prove that people living near quarries have significantly higher rates of disease than those living far away. They haven't done so because such evidence doesn't exist, even if they go back several decades before stringent emissions standards were imposed.

Most Temecula residents I've talked to support the quarry. It seems a vocal minority have banded together to write letters and scare people into opposing it. I think I know what these people are really afraid of: In their humble opinions, the city of Temecula is too hoity-toity to host a rock plant.

They might be surprised to learn that Palos Verdes, no slouch of a city, was home to Chandler's Sand and Gravel for decades, and it did not hurt property values or create health issues.

Other towns of prominence such as Pasadena, Arcadia, Bradbury, Glendora, Claremont, Alta Loma and Upland have had quarries in operation without significant risks to the health of people or the values of the houses they live in. I think it's about time some of these high-falutin' naysayers get off their high horses and start dealing with reality.

RICK KELLOGG
Wildomar

8/15/06, The Californian

'Rock-huggers' ignore facts, common sense

First it was the tree-huggers, then it was the bird-huggers, next it was the toad-huggers, and my personal favorite, the Stephens kangaroo rat-huggers.

Each hugger is inspired by their perceived contribution to saving the planet.

Now, we have the rock-huggers, those wild-eyed activists who tell us that our quality of life is doomed in the Temecula Valley because of the Liberty Quarry and the evil and subversive Granite Construction Co.

Ah, those shocking liberal platitudes of how our children will not be able to play their Xboxes because the silica dust has coated the screen. How every Temecula resident over 30 will be wearing a dust mask and breathing from an oxygen bottle in their backpack.

I love how the rock-huggers are able to twist, or ignore, the factual surveys and analysis of a nationally accredited environmental assessor. These surveys show that the quarry will improve the overall quality of life in Temecula, not destroy it, as the rock-huggers love to portray.

I can close my eyes and visualize Al (Hot Spell-Hugger) Gore at his blackboard with his laser pointer. I see Al pontificating to his eager class of future huggers (with little Paul Jacobs in the front row). How these liberals love to spin and exaggerate the facts and ignore common sense to fit their agenda.

Debate is good. Debate is American. But let's not trash the facts and common sense to pacify the emotional exaggerations of the Hugger Nation.

LARRY LEPLEY

7/4/06, North County Times

The Benefits to a Backyard Quarry

(Read the entire commentary here.)

Bob Kowell
Murrieta

6/30/06, The Californian

Quarry will reduce dust near freeways

Those who have written about the potential dust hazard from the proposed Liberty Quarry in southern Riverside County don't seem to understand where all the dust is coming from. Rock quarries have effective methods to control dust emissions and do a very good job of it. They know they can be severely penalized if they fail to meet stringent standards.

The biggest problem with dust arises when trucks leave the quarry and hit the road. The turbulence caused by big rigs driving at freeway speeds creates a tremendous dust storm, sending micro particles into the nearby houses. Those of us who live close to a freeway know how hard it is to keep dust out of our homes. It has been estimated that the establishment of the new rock quarry will reduce the number of loads of gravel trucks driving through Lake Elsinore by about 1,200 every day.

When you factor in the return trips, this figure is roughly doubled. That doesn't even take into account the accidental spillage caused by faulty equipment, or fine particles that blow off the top. I support the proposed rock quarry as a way to reduce dust in the air and congestion on most Riverside County freeways.

FRED CROWE
Lake Elsinore

 

Worthy Quarry

June , 2006, The Press-Enterprise

I've lived in Temecula Valley since 1987. I have business here in town. I care about the quality of
our life here. I care about traffic and pollution. I'm sensitive to K-rats and Fairy Shrimp. I've driven
by quarries on my way to Vegas and around Irwindale. I don't know what types of quarries they
are. I just know they look horrible. So the mere mention of a quarry close by gives me a knee-
jerk reaction of joining S.O.S.and singing their anthem: "Don't Quarry, be Happy". BUT WAIT!
Maybe, just maybe, I should look into this a little further. There are so many questions: Will it
reduce pollution? Will we have fewer trucks on our roads? Will we have a new business partner
involved in bettering our community? Will it save us money? So like any intelligent voter should
do, I arranged a tour with Granite Constructions Indio mine operation and the proposed site of the
Liberty Quarry. I was able to get a first hand look and get all my questions answered. I was
impressed with not just the CLEAN and QUIET operation of the quarry, but also with their plans
to make Liberty quarry totally isolated from anything and everything. Both site and sound. It
won't be seen from the I-15. It won't be seen from DeLuz or Fallbrook. It just won't be seen.
And dust particals that Vail Ranch or Redhawk are concerned about that may blow their way
would have a lesser chance than the sand I kick up in the sand traps at the Redhawk Golf Course.
Remember, this will be a granite mine so they will use charges one to two times per day around
1:00 p.m. during the week only. The charges that will be used are less than some used by our
local restaurants. By-the-way, the reason this mine is important to this region is because all of
California is nearing a shortage of aggregate to build roads. Also, the closer the raw material the
cheaper the cost. Thank you Senator Dennis Hollingsworth and Assemblyman Ray Haynes for
understanding what it takes to build infrastructures. Here's a little known fact: For every 25 or
30 miles the the trucks have to haul their material it doubles in price. The closer the quarry.
The bigger the savings and the less trucks on the road. Less trucks equals less traffic which
reduces pollution.

Now if it sounds like that tour got to me, you might be right. However, you should always get
both sides before rendering an opinion. I may have stepped over the line a bit. I apologize
for that. So next I plan to take a tour with Kathleen Hamiltion and S.O.S. I doubt that I will
wear their orange shirt just yet, but I owe it to this community and our quality of life here not
to leave any stone unturned. All I have to do is keep an opened mind.
Let's not forget all the hundreds of impact reports and studies that have not yet surfaced.
Hopefully they will start coming out around September. Then, and only then, can we truly
understand what impact a quarry may have. I'm sure 1st District Supervisor Bob Buster
has cleared a large portion of his desk for thes captivation novels. How about we use the
Four-Way Test: Is it the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Will it build good will and better
friendships? Will it be beneficial to all concerned? It always works for me.
All I'm saying is let all do our homework. It's far too easy and too soon to start in and join
the chorus with, "Don't Quarry, Be Happy".

David Thompson
Murrieta

 

Quarry will be a boon to region

4/21/2006, Readers of the North County Times and Californian

I'm hopeful that the proposed granite quarry south of town will be approved. The area it is proposed to go could hardly offer any better conditions for such an operation. The reduction in freeway truck traffic alone should go a long way toward justifying it in the minds of those who suggest they are opposing it on environmental grounds.
People want decent roads and nice homes, but many don't seem to realize that the raw materials for these must come from somewhere. Would they like for us to pay even more exorbitant prices for materials? Should we send to China for our gravel?

I would like to see the powers that be use some old-fashioned common sense in this thing, and leave the excessive emotionalism outside the decision-making process.

WILLIAM RENCH
Temecula

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