Cemex Mine Stakes Are Too High

The Signal is to be commended for reporting that Cemex USA has sued the Bureau of Land Management to overturn the administrative decision that would have effectively terminated its two 10-year contracts for aggregate mining in Soledad Canyon.

The Santa Clarita City should have issued a press release after learning of the suit. It is difficult to believe that the information came as a surprise to the staff and City Council members in July.

Each day, many individuals and companies decide whether to invest their time and resource in the Santa Clarita Valley. We deserve to have the most recent and best information available about the project.

On its web site, the city has a link, “Help Stop the Mega Mine in Soledad Canyon.” As of this writing it has not been updated to reflect the fact that the lawsuit has been filed. The city should keep this site up to date with current information.

Although the city is not a party to the lawsuit, I believe that council members may be called to testify about the “truce,” if and when it goes to trial. We can certainly expect them to file a friend of the court brief in support of the BLM appeals board decision.

This is not the first time the city has been less than transparent about Cemex mine development. Cemex sued the city for attempting to annex the mine site. The settlement of the suit was made without fanfare when the city agreed to remove the mine from the proposed annexation. Where was the media coverage of this settlement?

Let us not forget that the mine’s proposed location is not within the city limits of Santa Clarita. The press should attempt to get comment from L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger and put her on the record about Cemex mining.

I hope The Signal will continue with in-depth coverage of the Cemex mine development and not rely solely on the city for information. The stakes are too high for our community.

Steve Petzold Santa Clarita