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Dear Editor:
When Chris Beaver first looked at the parcel of land that he’s proposing to turn into a gravel pit along the White River, he couldn’t justify why his company would dig it.
“There’s not enough sand and gravel to justify the amount of money that I would spend and pain that everybody would come across,” Beaver said in his closing remarks at the Noblesville Common Council meeting on June 14. “There’s about 12 to 14 feet of gravel that I could take. That’s not enough to cover my cost, so I personally bought this land so that I would not put hardship on my company.”
The Common Council heard from Beaver Gravel, the Hamilton County Parks and Recreation Department, and two companies hired by the petitioners about the proposal to mine sand and gravel just south of Potter’s Bridge Park in Noblesville.
Only three people stepped forward to support the gravel pit. Brad Beaver, an at-large Hamilton County councilor and relative of Chris Beaver, and two people from a real estate company hired by Beaver Gravel. Several members of the public and the citizen’s group Don’t Leave It to Beaver (DLITB) presented on the risks of the proposed project, including the lack of details regarding the mining operation.
“Mine management and spill management details are lacking,” said Dr. Rachel Walker, the principal geologist with Mundell and Associates during the DLITB presentation. “While it’s noted that no sorting or washing will occur onsite, it seems unlikely that the dredge or excavator would be routinely moved off site for refueling and maintenance. A detailed spill prevention and emergency response plan should be a part of the excavation.”
In the petitioner’s presentation, the hydrogeology company Intera illustrated the risk to Hamilton County’s drinking water. The company constructed two monitoring wells – which would also be used to monitor water contamination if the project proceeds – and created a detailed 3D model of the area to gather their data.
They found in their predictive models that particles reached the existing pumping well in small amounts (0.5 percent to 5 percent) and also reached the Church well – a wellfield owned by Indiana American Water – in higher amounts (1 percent to 8.5 percent). An additional, theoretical well located on the Church wellfield would see more particles (3 percent to 16 percent) if it were drilled to the north of the existing Church well.
The Noblesville Common Council will vote on the issue at its June 28 meeting.
Concerned citizens are invited to write to their elected officials about the matter. If you live outside of the city’s corporate districts, you can write the mayor instead. Contact information and writing resources can be found on the Don’t Leave It to Beaver website.
Don’t Leave It to Beaver
Stop the Gravel Pit
Common Council Watch Guide
Here are the time codes for some of the most important segments during the Noblesville Common Council’s three-hour meeting:
- City Planning presentation on the gravel pit (49:00 minute mark)
- Intera’s presentation (1:13:00 minute mark)
- Brad Beaver’s statement of County Council support (1:39:00 minute mark)
- DLITB presentation (1:49:00 minute mark)
- General public comment (2:22:00 minute mark)
- Chris Beaver’s statement (2:46:00 minute mark)