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Parkdale Quarry Expansion Project <br /> <br />Attachment 14.0 – 14. Statement indicating how the proposed use will be in harmony and <br />compatible with surrounding land uses and development in the area and/or measures that can be <br />taken to make it in harmony & compatible. <br /> <br /> <br />The Parkdale Quarry and the proposed expansion area are located in eastern portion of the Upper <br />Arkansas Valley Planning District, District 5, as shown in the 2015 Fremont County Master Plan. Current <br />land uses and development in the area include mining, ranching and livestock grazing, recreation within <br />the Arkansas River riparian corridor, and wildlife habitat, with some low-density residential <br />development. No portion of the project is visible from the Gold Belt National Scenic Byway. The Parkdale <br />Quarry has operated within its current boundaries since 1998. The proposed expansion will utilize the <br />existing mining, utility, and transportation infrastructure, and will concentrate commercial development <br />in an area with an existing commercial use established. The proposed expansion also allows for the <br />potential redevelopment of portions of the reclaimed areas of the alluvial mine area for rail car storage <br />for the Rock and Rail Railroad which services the quarry. This dual use would place stored railcars in a <br />location not generally visible from areas commonly accessed by the public. <br /> <br />The expansion would allow mining to be moved further from the river corridor. This will reduce the <br />potential for impacts to recreational uses and wildlife within the Arkansas River riparian corridor. The <br />proposed expansion project was the subject of a NEPA EIS. The EIS included analysis of visual impacts. <br />The visual impact analysis from the EIS is appended to this harmonious use statement. The project <br />includes mitigation measures to minimize impacts to viewshed from the project. These mitigation <br />measures include concurrent reclamation as mining progresses such that reclamation commences in an <br />area as final mining is completed, and mine-from-behind where mining uses existing topographic <br />features to screen mining to the extent practical. <br /> <br />The proposed expansion project was the subject of a NEPA EIS. The EIS included input on impacts on <br />wildlife from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Colorado Department of Parks and Wildlife, <br />the Rocky Mountain Bighorn Society, the Wild Sheep Foundation, the local Trout Unlimited Chapter, the <br />Wilderness Society/Wild Connections, and private citizens. Martin Marietta/Front Range Aggregates is <br />collaborating with the Colorado Department of Parks and Wildlife, the Rocky Mountain Bighorn Society, <br />and the Wild Sheep Foundation on habitat enhancement projects at the Parkdale Quarry, and has <br />already incorporated recommendation from those entities into our current mining operation. We are <br />also soliciting input on habitat enhancement for the riparian area along Tallahassee Creek on our <br />company-owned property. <br /> <br />The current and proposed measures will help to assure that the expansion be in harmony and <br />compatible with surrounding land uses and development in the area.