Neighbors tell state of quarry woes

[cheeky043]

CHEEKTOWAGA
Neighbors tell state of quarry woes
By BARBARA O'BRIEN
News Southtowns Bureau
5/18/2005

Neighbors of Buffalo Crushed Stone said Tuesday evening they have had enough of the blasting, the noise, the smell and the traffic from the Cheektowaga quarry.
"We are sick and tired of them being our neighbor," said Douglas Hlavaty of Rowley Road. "We are the home owners, and we should be the ones to decide what happens in the neighborhood. We're tired of having to fight for our rights."

Nearly 100 people attended the "scoping" meeting conducted in Bellevue Fire Hall by the state Department of Environmental Conservation to solicit suggestions for the environmental problems the quarry should resolve. The quarry wants to mine the isthmus, a 39-acre parcel between the east and west quarries, and must put together an environmental impact statement noting the effects and how they would be mitigated.

The quarry would move its rock-crushing plant and blacktop plants from the isthmus 150 feet down into the east quarry basin. Once the mining of the 39-acre parcel is completed in 10 to 20 years, the quarry would be reclaimed as one large lake. Original reclamation plans had called for two lakes separated by a park.

Emotional appeals over illnesses blamed on the quarry mingled with specific issues that town officials asked to be considered.

"I've got a 12-year-old boy who just had his thyroid out; we thought it was cancer," said Mark Goulding of Rowley Road. "This is a residential area, let's keep it that way."

"They're blasting my house apart," said Suzanne Hartman of Como Park Boulevard.

She said she and her husband are trying to restore the home. But blasting from the quarry cracks the new drywall, while rock dust from the operation forces her to dust "constantly," she said.

"You work so hard, nobody's ever, ever going to buy this house knowing this is behind it," Hartman said.

Town Council Member Thomas M. Johnson Jr. said the town continues to receive "frantic" complaints from residents about blast effects. Extending the life of the mine, he said, would extend the negative impacts. He also said the quarry should compare the economics of mining another 39 acres in Cheektowaga with those of expanding operations at one of its other quarries.

The DEC will accept written comments through June 3.


e-mail: bobrien@buffnews.com

[farmall806]

BLASTING MY HOUSE APART

roflmao It is just a little shake, rattle and roll . LOL

If things are so bad in the neighborhood, why don't they sell their houses and move to a different neighborhood? If they can't find a buyer through the regular real estate route, why don't they auction their houses off? If they put their houses up for auction , they would find a buyer that same day.

farmall806

[WNYresident]

YOu know I live less than a mile away from the quarry near indian road. I have yet to feel my house shake during a blast or even know when they happen seeing I have never noticed them.

What they should do is invite a small group of people over to thier house when they know there will be blasting. Let the group feel the shaking from the blast so we get an honest opinion of what is going on. Have the people who want the quarry closed because of the shaking from the blasting ever invite the tv stations over to experience this?

[yokes]

I live a mile from the broadway train yards. We get rumbling all day long, as well as the great track resurfacing at all hours.

Is the blasting in the quarry a constant thing? I was led to believe it only occurred sporadically

[cheeky043]

QUOTE]Have the people who want the quarry closed because of the shaking from the blasting ever invite the tv stations over to experience this?[/QUOTE]

See, this is the problem, you are not informed! The TV stations were at the homes back in 2002 & 2003. The camera man & the reporters waited in the kitchen of a local home, the footage was shown on the news. The camera shook and the footage verified it when it was shown on the news.

I am tired of telling you that NOT EVERY home is effected!!!!!!!!!

The home MUST be on a fault of fisher (? spelling) in the earth in order for the vibrations to be felt.
Hell, you can feel it on some sidewalks.

What the Hell is wrong with you unfeeling so and so's, you can't just pick up and leave or auction your home.


You just wait WNYresident, if this quarry's plans go through, that hugh rock crusher will be in the corner of the EAST Quarry just across Indian rd. Blasting will be at ground level, I hope your close enough to experience the fright of a blown out window from the force of the blast. Ask the folks in PA where this company is from, they are living the nightmare of ground blasting. Check google for their story.

Baby you want to talk about shake rattle and roll, you will beg for relief just as these people have.

You should have attended the meeting last night and sat there while a father fighting back his emotion talked of his son's ailing health.

It was not just health issues, resident after resident spoke about their reasons for not allowing this expansion and it was not the same old faces & voices!

You had better thank the good lord that you have not been harmed by this monster, YET!!!!!!

By the way, how long have you lived in this community??????

This quarry should compare the economics of mining another 39 acres in Cheektowaga with those of expanding operations at one of its other quarries as Councilmen Johnson stated.

*Do you realize that the area the quarry wishes to mine has been contaminated with Benzene, and a combination of other toxins from many years of asphalt production and stockpiling?

When that rock is blasted those toxins will fill the air and you along with the rest of us will breath it into your lungs - it may fester for years and then one day... who knows..... you might be the next victim....... So again, WNYRESIDENT, HOW many years have you lived in this community???? That is a big factor.....

In closing
BCS should finish up their business just as they are which should be about 1 yr, if that, and give this community it's (2) life sustaining lakes.

Dennis the menace finally spoke out against the quarry last night, the Buffalo News did not print that. He said on the record that CHEEKTOWAGA is AGAINST ANY EXPANSION AT BCS!

GET OUT OF BELLEVUE BUFFALO CRUSHED STONE!
WE ARE LITERALLY “SICK” AND TIRED OF YOUR DIRT, DUST, ODOR, NOISE, & VIBRATION. We are tired of broken/chipped windshields, using our tax dollars to repair the roads that your trucks rip apart, & worrying if our child's health will be your next victim.

WE ARE ALSO TIRED OF CROOKED STATE POLITICIANS THAT SUPPORT BUFFALO CRUSHED STONE'S EXPANSION!!!!!!!!!!!!!
MAINLY PAUL TOKASZ.

[ERIEMAN]

I've lived near the quarry for many years and the only rumbling I ever felt always occurred once - at noon. I'm not even sure the rumbling happened EVERY day. Big deal.

All I hear now is "oh how sick I am", "my neighbor is sick", "my dog is sick", and now you are saying "give this community it's (2) life sustaining lakes". That is the MOST RIDICULOUS statement I have ever heard. If the quarry is making people sick, why then, would you want lakes created from them? Do you think that the supposed source of the disease will magically go away if water is introduced? LIFE SUSTAINING! HAHAHAHAHAHA!

You people lowered the values of your own houses. If BCS ends up leaving, and your silly toxic lakes are created, you'll inevitably end up complaining that since the water table in the area rose, your basements will be filling up with water and your electric bill will be too high because your sump pump is constantly running.

[WNYresident]

See, this is the problem, you are not informed! The TV stations were at the homes back in 2002 & 2003. The camera man & the reporters waited in the kitchen of a local home, the footage was shown on the news. The camera shook and the footage verified it when it was shown on the news.

I am tired of telling you that NOT EVERY home is effected!!!!!!!!!

The home MUST be on a fault of fisher (? spelling) in the earth in order for the vibrations to be felt.
Hell, you can feel it on some sidewalks.

I didn't say you home wasn't effected. I asked if you ever had people over at the home which is affected. I understand what fault lines are and how your home can rest on top of one. I just asked did others see this happen. Honestly though I haven't felt a thing in my yard or house.

[ERIEMAN]

"WE ARE ALSO TIRED OF CROOKED STATE POLITICIANS THAT SUPPORT BUFFALO CRUSHED STONE'S EXPANSION!!!!!!!!!!!!!
MAINLY PAUL TOKASZ."

Doesnt Tokasz live right near the quarry? Doesn't Gorski live right near the quarry? I hardly think the impetus behind quarry expansion is politics. I might see your point if Tokasz lived miles away from the "affected area", but he doesnt. If it was selfish politics, the opposite would be happening - BCS would have been forced out long ago.

[WNYresident]

By the way, how long have you lived in this community??????

When that rock is blasted those toxins will fill the air and you along with the rest of us will breath it into your lungs - it may fester for years and then one day... who knows..... you might be the next victim....... So again, WNYRESIDENT, HOW many years have you lived in this community???? That is a big factor.....

I have owned my businesses in the community for about 23 years and lived here for about 7. I was here before Cheektowaga became empty stripmall alley.


And it won't be dust that kills me, it will be years of breathing in fumes from the 1000's of cars that go up and down union road near walden.

[cheeky043]

All I hear now is "oh how sick I am", "my neighbor is sick", "my dog is sick", and now you are saying "give this community it's (2) life sustaining lakes". That is the MOST RIDICULOUS statement I have ever heard. If the quarry is making people sick, why then, would you want lakes created from them? Do you think that the supposed source of the disease will magically go away if water is introduced? LIFE SUSTAINING! HAHAHAHAHAHA!

And what school did you "dun gradiate" from?

The blasting of rock containing silica is making peolpe sick there will be NO BLASTING when the lakes are there.

Also, the clean up prior to the reclamation plan will alleviate many of the toxins.

They just don't close the gates and poof it's a clean lake, it takes time to close an operation such as this properly...
Look at Schultz Landfill, it's been over a year and they are not done!!

I have a suggestion for all you know it all's out there first of all Kiss my butt and second go to a library and borrow some books, perhaps it will help if you inform yourself about something other then beer... Maybe learn about reality...

[cheeky043]

I have owned my businesses in the community for about 23 years and lived here for about 7.

7 years?? Your a newbie!! Just wait and see what happens in another few years.

But who knows, maybe luck will be with you and you will be one of those people that are not prone to illness.

I'd like to speak to you in 20 years if your still here.

[farmall806]

Silica only causes silicosis of the lungs if you get it in a large enough quantity and are directly exposed to it for an EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME! Direct exposure would be the workers in the mine where the blasting occurs , not the neighbors that are hundreds , if not thousands of feet away from the open pit mine.

Extended period of time would equal years if not decades.

Of course you can sell your home . Just get an auctioneer to auction it off. It is done all the time.

[ERIEMAN]

And what school did you "dun gradiate" from?

The blasting of rock containing silica is making peolpe sick there will be NO BLASTING when the lakes are there.

Also, the clean up prior to the reclamation plan will alleviate many of the toxins.

They just don't close the gates and poof it's a clean lake, it takes time to close an operation such as this properly...
Look at Schultz Landfill, it's been over a year and they are not done!!

I have a suggestion for all you know it all's out there first of all Kiss my butt and second go to a library and borrow some books, perhaps it will help if you inform yourself about something other then beer... Maybe learn about reality...

Let's not get into an "I'm smarter than you" argument. You won't win, simply because even with the problems in the area, you decided to stay. I moved. I did the smart thing. I lived in cheektowaga for 28 years. I'd say thats plenty long enough for me to be able to say that I am familiar with the town.

You claim that cleanup will "alleviate many of the toxins". So you are willing to live with a few "leftover toxins". What do you think is going to happen to the leftovers once the quarry is filled? How many times did the news report on "green, bubbing mud" in the Old Farm Rd area? Yeah! I'm sure those lakes will be REALLY "life sustaining" as you so intelligently put it. Alien life, maybe. As soon as that lake opens, I'l be rushing to take my kids there!

You people spew anything you hear from your neighbors and the media. Most of you are completely clueless. I am amazed, though, at how many sick people there are near Wherle and Harris Hill. Or all the people dying near Ransom and Stage roads in Clarence. People just lying in the streets, writhing in pain. The horror. The sarcasm.

I am also amazed at how many of the quarry workers have come forward with their tales of death and disease. At last count, I believe, it was NONE! Common sense would dictate that the WORKERS would be the first ones affected.

Sorry, not buying the quarry argument. It makes NO sense. I cannot argue that people in Cheektowaga are getting sick from something, bu it isnt the quarry.

[cheeky043]

Silica only causes silicosis of the lungs if you get it in a large enough quantity and are directly exposed to it for an EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME! Direct exposure would be the workers in the mine where the blasting occurs , not the neighbors that are hundreds , if not thousands of feet away from the open pit mine.

Inhalation of quartz silica has been associated with a number of other, less well characterized, harmful effects including effects on the kidney (glomerulonephritis), the liver, the spleen and immune system disorders (progressive systemic sclerosis, scleroderma rheumatoid arthritis and Lupus).

The risk of developing silicosis depends on the airborne concentration of crystalline silica, the particle size and the duration of exposure.

The NIOSH Hazard Review, Health Effects of Occupational Exposure to Respirable Crystalline Silica, describes published studies and literature on the health effects of occupational exposure to respirable crystalline silica among workers in the United States and many other countries.

The review indicates a significant risk of chronic silicosis for workers exposed to respirable crystalline silica over a working lifetime even at the current Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) permissible exposure limit (PEL), or the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) recommended exposure limit (REL). It discusses three recent studies that estimated that the risk of silicosis for a 45-year working lifetime is 47% to 90% for cumulative silica exposure levels at concentrations equal to the current PEL.

***In addition to the risk of silicosis, workers exposed to respirable crystalline silica have an increased risk of developing lung cancer, pulmonary tuberculosis, and airway diseases (bronchitis and emphysema). The latest scientific information also indicates possible associations of occupational exposure to silica dust with autoimmune diseases, which include lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and chronic renal disease.***

Until improved sampling and analytical methods are developed for respirable crystalline silica, NIOSH will continue to recommend:

an exposure limit of 0.05 mg/m3 as a time-weighted average (TWA) for up to a 10-hr workday during a 40-hr workweek. ***

!!NOW BRAIN MAN tell me what happens to the young child that is in the vicinity of a QUARTZ (limestone) quarry for 24 hours a day? !!

The dust is in his parents home, on the toys he plays with in the yard, in the car he rides in, on the clothes his mother has hung outside, in the air he continually breaths?

All NIOSH and OSHA standards are based on a max. of 40 hours a week what happens to that child who can't get away from the dust?

AS I HAVE EXPLAINED ON THIS BOARD MANY TIMES, "Crystalline silica" is microscopic, it is released with each blast and with each loaded truck that travels these roads.

This child's immune system is at risk.

I'm done trying to get it through your heads, it's the same people all the time on this board and frankly it's getting old.

You apparently lack the compassion to understand what these people are going through. You come up with hairbrained ideas like sell your home, auction it off.

It's all easy to say when you are not living it, I give up, you win...

[ERIEMAN]

You have no idea what you are talking about. You are not able to remove yourself from the area that you are living in to realize that people ALL around Cheektowaga have symptoms like those in Bellevue. It isn't all concentrated there. My family has had more than it's fair share of strange diseases, most of which are autoimmune in etiology, and most of them live west of the quarry.

!!NOW BRAIN MAN tell me what happens to the young child that is in the vicinity of a QUARTZ (limestone) quarry for 24 hours a day? !!

What happens to a WORKER that is IN the quarry for 8 hours a day?

You apparently lack the compassion to understand what these people are going through. You come up with hairbrained ideas like sell your home, auction it off.

These people? I've lived with it long enough to know that you people are chasing the wrong thing. What happens after the quarry is gone and the symptoms persist? What do you do then? Do you blame the Bellevue Inn? Why not blame Resurrection for not praying hard enough? Blame the Deer Lady too!

What else woudl you do if you felt the area was making people sick? You stay there? That is just ridiculous.