SWE did not receive an Email from Jeanne that provided a direct link. Nevertheless, her account of how the public is treated and how local governments too often do recognize or choose to ignore the devastation caused by irresponsible public police and the impact "big buck spending" in the legislature have on rural life and communities.
Hi Crush presentation at Whitehall
I would say that some of what Hi Crush had to say tonight in Whitehall was pure propaganda. They were doing a presentation to the Whitehall City Council. It was so very hard to sit and listen to what they had to say. They constantly said they were going to be transparent and truthful. They were good neighbors. They are proposing a similar operation in Whitehall to the one which currently exists in Augusta. They are asking to be annexed into the city of Whitehall because of the current moratorium in Trempealeau County....this is not totally true because they have given this presentation several times in the last 16 months.
They were asked many questions by one particular city council member...he asked about the hi cap well that was improperly done last year. They all appeared shocked that it happened. Those presenting did not take responsibility for this, but blamed it on some poor schmuck who did it not know he needed a permit. They said they did not get a fine from the DNR and that all was good....I believe they did get a fine and that they indeed dug not one but two Hi Cap wells...I so wish I had my copy of the letter from the DNR to HI Crush as I believe there were other violations as well. They would admit to only this one screw up....
The most disturbing thing about this whole meeting was this....they insisted all was good with Augusta. There are no problems. In fact they brought nearly 40 people from the mine (people who work for them) to this meeting. I was blown away when someone asked for all Hi Crush employees to raise their hands and it was more than half the room. The mayor of Augusta was there too...he gave rave reviews for Hi Crush...they run a good business and there are no problems in Augusta....I just was not sure that I could believe that....I so wish some of my Augusta area friends had been at this meeting....I think the Whitehall city council drank the Kool-Aide.....
To top it off, after I spoke about some of the problems in the Bloomer and Town of New Auburn area, this woman spoke up and basically said I was wrong. The mines have been great for that area. Lots of jobs and they have been so good to the schools. She said the people in Chippewa County truly benefit from the industry....I was losing my mind by then...I have yet to recover....my heart is breaking for the people of Whitehall and Independence....this Hi Crush operation is being shoved down their throats...we are talking nearly 900 acres...they also intend to be in the business for 50-60 years. That is how long they are committed to being in Whitehall.
Chris Danou was there and he was taking a lot of notes....he did correct one of the company men regarding SB349. He let the council know that if the bill passed in its current form, they would have no power to regulate this operation. We were happy to see him. It was a tough meeting and the council is not voting tonight. They were just taking information. But many of us were seeing the writing on the wall and it was quite sad....I felt for the first time that many who have been fighting in Trempealeau County felt totally helpless and defeated. We just can't fight this big corporation. They were very happy to tell us how big they were...BUT they would not tell us what their profits were from the mine in Augusta....
I will gather my thoughts tomorrow and look at my notes and add to this. I just had to get it out to you all. If any from the Augusta area feel so inclined, you could write to Rod Moen (yes, the former State Democratic senator), who is the Mayor of Whitehall and let him know that it is not all a bed of roses in Augusta...i am sure they all left the meeting tonight feeling that if it was this great and wonderful for Augusta and no one was complaining now, we can do this here....Mr. Moen is in favor of this mine...it will be a wash plant, dry plant, mine and loading station. All via trains. They swear there will be NO trucks...but how long before some other mine wants to haul their sand to this train station??? What then...
Thanks for listening...it was a hard night for Trempealeau County....
Jeanne