Supervisors OK Gravel Mining Plan

The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a controversial gravel mining plan Tuesday that opponents said will threaten underground water supplies.

With little discussion, supervisors granted a conditional use permit allowing Los Angeles-based CalMat Co. to dig 22 feet below the historical high ground-water mark in one of its three pits in El Rio, an unincorporated section of land between Oxnard and Saticoy.

The existing county General Plan policy prohibits deep-pit digging in a forebay, a pool where water collects before filtering into the ground-water supply. Only the supervisors can grant an amendment to that policy.

The mining area includes portions of land where water from the Santa Clara River and sewage treatment plants seeps through the ground into the aquifers below.

Thomas Davis, project manager for CalMat, said he was thrilled about the ruling.

“We worked very hard with the county and other agencies to come up with a project that had good science,” he said.

Under the revised plan, CalMat will take about five years to excavate 3 million to 6 million tons of gravel as low as 25 feet below the current pit floor, or 22 feet below the current ground-water high mark, Davis said.

The original plan, which the county’s planning division of its Resource Management Agency rejected, called for excavation between 60 and 100 feet below the high ground-water mark in all three pits.

Scott Ellison, a county planner, said he is convinced the revised plan will not damage the ground-water supply. He urged supervisors to approve the plan even though he said traffic, noise and air-quality concerns still exist.

“The benefits outweigh the adverse impacts,” he said.

Prior to the vote, which followed three hours of testimony, two supervisors praised CalMat for its honesty in dealing with Ventura County officials over the years.

“CalMat has been a very good neighbor to me,” said Supervisor John Flynn.

Supervisor Judy Mikels rebuffed project opponents for citing too many “coulds” in discussing possible contamination problems.

“The reality is, [contamination] is very unlikely to happen,” she said, adding that county officials will monitor the excavation.

The proposal’s numerous opponents all expressed concerns about possible ground-water contamination.

“I’m begging you, deny this project with prejudice,” said Russ Baggerly, a member of the Ventura County Environmental Coalition. “It’s your chance to be angels.”

Margaret Moore Sohagi, a Los Angeles-based lawyer hired by the city of Oxnard to fight the project, said deep-pit digging removes the vadose zone, a protective natural barrier above the ground water that filters out contaminants.

“We can’t support this project,” she said.

Proponents emphasized economic considerations.

Thomas Raffican, district manager of the Associated General Contractors of America, a trade organization representing more than 1,000 contractors and construction professionals statewide, said gravel excavated here costs local contractors $7 to $8 per ton, while gravel purchased and transported from another county costs as much as $17 per ton.

“The costs are going to be prohibitive if this does not go through,” he said.

“This project will keep over 75 employees working,” added William Dominisse, CalMat’s district manager.