Join the Coastal Conservation League and others to speak out against RDA’s proposed limestone mining operation in Williamsburg County. The rally will kick-off at 5:30 p.m., a half hour before a public hearing. The rally and hearing will be held at Andrews High School, 12890 County Line Road in Andrews.
Here are a few talking points that you can cite in your opposition to the possible mine:
- The massive operation would take place over 20 years, on 1,000 now-forested acres.
- Mining would take place 50 feet or more below ground level and would involve discharging as much as 2.5 million gallons of groundwater and sediment daily into the Murray Swamp. That discharge could damage water quality and harm wildlife.
- The Murray Swamp flows into the scenic Black River, a critical habitat for the endangered Atlantic Sturgeon.
- The process of “dewatering” the mine by pumping out groundwater could cause sinkholes and residential wells to dry up.
- Previous DHEC reports demonstrate dry mines can be harmful in this area.
- Blasting noise from the mine would disrupt the quiet, rural nature of this community.
- More than 100 trucks would enter and leave the mine every day and travel on narrow, rural roads, making them dangerous for local residents.
- The mine would create at most 20 jobs and would not be an economic engine for the area.