I am happy that the frac-sand miners are consenting to an environmental impact study, but the Post-Bulletin's conclusion that it will save time and money for the mining and landowner interests is the P-B's usual short-sighted conclusion: follow the almighty dollar.
All I read about is the huge volume of trucks, the damage to our roads and bridges, etc. No one seems to understand the potential for extreme man-made ecological damage.
Most of this area is underlain with very porous karst limestone deposits. We are very fortunate that they are covered with heavy layers of sand which acts as an excellent filtration device, preventing ground water pollution from contaminating our underground aquifers.
Now you are proposing that we strip mine this natural filtration system to use as a propellant for forcing more fossil fuel from the ground — just when we should be doing the opposite and developing nonpolluting renewable fuel sources.
In 1970, Rochester insisted on putting a landfill on karst limestone deposits in Oronoco Township without liners in the first cell, poor liners in the second, and as a result created a Superfund site for the rest of us to clean up.
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Why in the heaven's name would the rest of the world want Rochester as a "Destination Medical Center" with our pollution record and attitude?
James Hoffman
Chatfield
