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April 14, 2016 <br /> Stephen Sovaiko <br /> 11335 Valle Verde Dr <br /> Colorado Springs CO 80926 <br /> Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety <br /> 1313 Sherman Street, Room 215 <br /> Denver, CO 80203 <br /> Ms.Amy Eschberger: <br /> The proposed Reclamation and Mining development at Hitch Rack Ranch;submitted by Transit Mix <br /> Concrete Company, Permit No. M-2016-010,would bring a large-scale aggregate mining development <br /> unnecessarily close,and abutting in at least two areas,to residential, [A-5] neighborhoods. Quarry <br /> development brings significant, long-term consequences to the environment, public health, safety,and <br /> well-being of the effected and adjoining neighborhoods due to: substantially increased truck traffic, <br /> dust, and noise pollution,to an area that is known for its strapped natural resources-water, and highest <br /> fire danger area. All the while,juxtaposed to the area's unparalleled natural beauty,abundant wildlife, <br /> wildlife habitats,and wildlife migratory trails, make this development both undesirable and <br /> unsustainable. As a resident of Red Rock Valley Estates Neighborhood, a Volunteer Firefighter with the <br /> SW Hwy 115 Fire Protection District who trains for more than 300 hours per year without <br /> compensation to protect this area, and a Red Rock Valley Estates Water District elected Board <br /> member who is sworn to protect our adjacent water sources,yet was never notified of this project <br /> until the recent public notice, I cannot support this development and;therefore, am opposed to the <br /> development for the following reasons: <br /> • Quarrying requires drilling and blasting with explosives,which create vibrations, noise, and dust. <br /> Once this process is completed, rock crushing machines crush the rock,conveyor belt machines <br /> move the rock around the processing plant;trucks are loaded and unloaded. The process and <br /> heavy machinery required to mine, is intrusive and creates significant noise and air pollution; <br /> thus having a direct impact on the surrounding areas and community. <br /> • Air quality is compromised and diminished by the fugitive dust associated with aggregate <br /> mining. Dust generated by mining often contains silica,a common naturally occurring crystal <br /> found in most rock beds. Prolonged exposure to silica may result in silicosis. According the <br /> Centers for Disease Control, "[s]ilicosis is a disabling, nonreversible and sometimes fatal lung <br /> disease caused by over exposure to respirable crystalline silica...Over exposure to dust that <br /> contains microscopic particles of crystalline silica can cause scar tissue to form in the lungs, <br /> which reduces lung's ability to extract oxygen from the air we breathe." In addition to silicosis, <br /> inhalation of crystalline silica particles has been associated with other diseases,such as <br />