ENB Region 8 Completed Applications 02/15/2006

The Department has received an application from Montemorano Bros Inc for a 4.1 acre sand and gravel mine on a 24.68 acre property in the Town of Galen.  The mine site is located on the south side of Travell Knapps Corners Road, approximately 2100 feet west of the intersection of High Street Road.  Excavation by tracked excavator and drag line is proposed to remove approximately 262,000 cubic yards of sand and gravel over a 5 to 10 year operational life.   Material will be dry screen processed and stockpiled on site for loading onto trucks.  The applicant  has estimated maximum traffic from mining operations to be 5 trucks per hour.

Mining is proposed below the local water table, and will create a pond on the site.  Cross sections show grades that will retain storm water runoff within the mined area and the pond being excavated by mining operations.  No off site discharges are proposed.  The mine area is west of the 100 foot wide adjacent area surrounding Class 2 Freshwater Wetland LN-11.  There are no NY State regulated streams or freshwater wetlands within the Life of Mine area.

Maximum hours of operation proposed are from 6 AM until 6 PM Monday through Saturday, as needed, with no operations on Sundays or holidays.  Final reclamation to a pond is proposed, and will include the replacement of stockpiled topsoil and seeding with an approved mixture above the water surface elevation.

The application is available for review at the Region 8 NYSDEC office, and a copy of the application materials has been sent to the Town of Galen.

    This document constitutes the Department's Notice of Complete Application for the permit listed above. The Department Staff ("Staff") have determined that the proposed modification to the applicant's Mined Land Use Plan (MLUP) is complete for the purpose of release to the public for review and comment, and for technical review by Mineral Resources staff.

The modification to the applicant's MLUP for the Palmer Road Sand and Gravel Pits will add 614.2 acres of excavation/affected area, and will develop 3.3 acres for an alternative access road into the site. The project is a continuation of mining in the existing gravel pits within the currently permitted 26.9 acre life-of-mine area, and will be divided into 9 separate phases. The mine is a sand and gravel operation producing aggregate for construction materials. The application also includes the placement of an aggregate processing plant on-site similar to that used at Cleason's nearby primary plant in Newark. The proposed modification is located in the Towns of Palmyra and Arcadia, Wayne County, New York. The site will be reclaimed to agricultural use.

A Phase 1A cultural resource study for the applicant's 660-acre Palmer Road property has been completed, and a Phase 1B archaeological investigation has been done in the first 90-acre phase to be affected by mining. The Study Report is included as an appendix in the DEIS. A mining permit Special Condition will require completed and accepted Phase 1B investigations in all proposed mining phases prior to the commencement of mining in that phase.

The Project is a Type I action pursuant ot ECL Article 8 (State Environmental Quality Review Act [SEQRA] ) and Title 6 of the Official Compilation of Codes, Rules and Regulations of the State of New York, 6 NYCRR Part 617. The Department is the lead agency for the SEQRA review of this action, and issued a Positive Declaration of environmental significance on March 28, 2005. A draft DEIS scoping outline was prepared and released for review to interested and involved agencies and members of the public. A public meeting to receive comments on the draft DEIS scope was held May 26, 2005 and a final SEQRA scoping outline was issued by the lead agency on June 16, 2005. The DEIS was submitted by the applicant on December 22, 2005, and discusses the existing conditions and potential environmental issues and effects of the Project impacts on agricultural lands, ground and surface waters, traffic, noise and dust, vegetation, wildlife, socio-economic issues and historic and archaeological  resources. After review, Staff have made the determination, as of the date of this Notice, that the DEIS is sufficiently complete and adequate in format and content to be accepted for public review and comment.

A Legislative hearing will be held to receive statements from the public concerning the proposed expansion and comments on the DEIS. The Hearing will be held at the Palmyra Town Hall on Thursday, March 2, 2006 from 7:00 to 9:00 PM. All persons, organizations, corporations or government agencies that may be affected by the Project are invited to attend the legislative hearing session. Written comments on the DEIS may be sent to Peter A. Lent, Regional Permit Administrator (RPA), at the address given below. It is not necessary to file a written request in advance to speak at the legislative hearing. Members of the public may make oral statements or file written statements at the hearing. The Public Comment period will be open until March 17, 2006. All comments are weighed equally. The hearing location is reasonably accessible to persons with a mobility impairment. Interpreter services shall be made available to hearing-impaired persons, at no charge, upon written request to the RPA at least 7 business days before the hearing.

The DEIS is available for public review at the Department's Region 8 Office, 6274 East Avon-Lima Road, Avon, New York 14414 [Tel: (585) 226-5395]; contact person: John L. Cole; at the Palmyra Town Hall, 1180 Canandaigua Road, Palmyra, New York 14522, [(315) 597-5521]; and at the Arcadia Town Hall, 100 E. Miller Street, Newark, New York 14513.

Environmental Conservation Law of the State of New York, Article 3, Title 3 (General Functions); Article 8 (State Environmental Quality Review); Article 23, Title 27 (Mined Land Reclamation); Article 17, Title 8 (State Pollutant Discharge Elimination System - SPDES General Permit No. GP-02-01 for Stormwater Discharges from Construction Activity).