Dear Editor;
We were surprised to read in the article “Groundwater district extends restrictions“ in your newspaper that the Texas Committee on Environmental Quality had approved the petition of Asphalt, Inc. of Austin Texas asking to create a rock crushing operation near Hoover Valley Park Road 4 and RR 3509 in Burnet County. I take this to mean that they found that the company would not release pollutions (dust) into the atmosphere surrounding the property and so not reduce the quality of the air in this corner of the county.
And that they were not concerned about the many other problems raised by citizens living in the area.
We are not sure just where they found a study that would have supported their determination. Wow. I am no scientist, I have no studies to support anything, but I have driven along Highway 281 between Marble Falls and Burnet as the wind whipped across the quarry operation there.
They have trees, earth berms and perhaps other methods to stop the drift of the rock dust. One only has to look to the west of this operation to see that all the methods have failed, as the trees across the road and for as far as the eye can see are coated with quarry dust. Coating trees is bad. Coating the lungs of the people who breathe the polluted air is more tragic. Appears someone(s) does not care.
We think that it would be only fitting for the committee members who approve this permit should be required to live within the affected area.
We sincerely hope that the LCRA will look at the conditions in the chain of Highland Lakes, pay head to the extended restrictions of the Central Texas Groundwater Conservation District and deny Asphalt, Inc.’s request for the approval of their permit and access to a huge huge amount of water.
Jim and Ginny Jensen Burnet
