Public hearing on St. Simons sand mining plans delayed
BRUNSWICK —A public hearing to discuss a proposed sand mining operation on St. Simons Island has been delayed until 6 p.m. April 21.
The intent of the mining project at Sinclair Plantation is to remove enough soil to make a 12-acre lake.
The delay in the public hearing has been questioned by county resident Julian Smith, who has expressed many concerns about the proposed project recommended for approval by the Island Planning Commission.
According to Smith, a 12-acre sand mine has a surface area of 522,720 square feet. Each foot of evacuation would require 1,936 round trips by dump trucks holding 10 cubic yards of fill, he said.
“How deep will this sand mine be? How many months or years will it take to excavate this sand mine? How many round trips will these dump trucks make over the course of this commercial operation?” he asked commissioners in an email.
Smith questioned what type of scheduling conflict could prevent the applicant, represented by a LLC, not to have a representative available to attend the April 7 public hearing as originally planned.
“During the presentation by the applicants and their agents, the Island Planning commissioners were told that digging this lake would mean fewer new houses could be built on their property and that the ‘excess dirt’ would be used to elevate building sites further north on St. Simons Island,” Smith said in an email to commissioners. “But what if there is not sufficient demand for fill dirt north of this site? What if the ‘excess dirt’ is hauled across the causeway to the mainland? Or hauled to Sea Island to raise the elevation of lots there?”
David Kyler, president and CEO of Center for a Sustainable Coast, said there are too many questions that need answered before county commissioners should consider voting on the request.
The applicant said the pond’s depth would depend on the amount of fill dirt they could sell and how quickly, but Kyler said there has to be a “reasonable limit” to the depth of the lake. He questioned how fill material stored on-site will be protected from storms and wind.
“If not properly and reliably contained/covered, the material could add to sedimentation carried to surrounding property as well as wetlands, which would be damaged by it,” he said.
The county should be “very concerned” about how lake construction could affect hydrology in the area.
“By creating a new water-retaining feature, stormwater runoff could be redirected away from wetlands that could be damaged by reduced water availability,” Kyler said. “Similarly, lake construction could increase risk of groundwater contamination by leaching various chemicals (landscaping products, vehicle lubricants, etc.) into soil-substructures that convey them into aquifers and habitats of fish and wildlife.”
Kyler said the county commission should — at most — grant provisional approval for lake construction “pending review and approval of the conditions set forth in the state mining permit.”
One of the selling points to the project was fill dirt would be hauled to other development sites on North St. Simons Island.
“Although the limitation on development of the project may help restrict additional traffic congestion and non-point-source pollution caused on-site, the fill sold to other developers will undoubtedly add to such problems elsewhere on St. Simons Island — because such fill will be used to prepare construction sites,” Kyler said. “Some of these other filled areas are likely to include wetlands, which will be destroyed or greatly degraded when filled.”