Azusa Rock Mining Plan Threatens Fish Canyon's West Ridge, View

Vulcan Materials Co.'s expansion plan threatens to further encroach on the natural beauty of the surrounding area photo by Richard Deem

San Gabriel Valley residents and those driving the 210 Freeway near Azusa can look north and see a large scar marring the rock face of the mountain on the west side of San Gabriel Canyon. Visible for miles, the huge gash results from decades of rock quarrying at Azusa Rock Quarry, immediately north of Duarte but in the city of Azusa.

The quarry owner, Vulcan MaterialsCo., is proposing a major expansion that would create a new scar deep into Van Tassel Ridge. This prominent ridge separates Duarte residential neighborhoods from Fish Canyon, a San Gabriel River tributary containing a spectacular 100-foot waterfall.

Vulcan, headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, is the nation's largest producer of aggregate (rock, sand, and gravel). In 1988 the City of Azusa granted Vulcan's predecessor, CalMat, a 50-year permit to mine rock on the east side of Fish Canyon. This mining has scarred the rock face, destroyed the natural streambed of Fish Canyon, and closed off public access to the waterfall, which lies a mile north of the quarry.

In its application to the City of Azusa for a modified Conditional Use Permit, Vulcan seeks permission to exchange its current permit to mine on the east side of Fish Canyon for the right to mine 80 acres of the west side, including Van Tassel Ridge.

Vulcan has promised to reclaim the new area after mining, using a new technique known as microbenching. This method creates benches one or two feet high and equally wide, on which native vegetation is hydroseeded (seed, fertilizer and mulch sprayed on in one application). If successful, the mined slopes would begin to look natural after several years. The same treatment would be given to the 40-foot steps of exposed rock slopes on the east previously mined, where revegetation would be much more difficult.

Vulcan also promises to restore the streambed of Fish Creek to a more natural condition.

Consultants to Vulcan prepared a Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) for the project, and hundreds of interested residents from Azusa and Duarte attended public hearings on it in January and February. Duarte residents were particularly worried about potential health hazards, destruction of visual beauty and loss of property values. The proposal could go to the Azusa City Council in March.

The Sierra Club opposes the proposal because of the project's environmental impacts. The main concern is that the profile of Van Tassel Ridge would be diminished by several hundred feet, permanently altering its natural appearance. Other concerns include:

1. Whether the micro-benching proposed as mitigation is feasible in solid rock [there are no existing examples of this form of reclamation on other Vulcan properties].
2. Whether additional quarrying of this magnitude can be done without releasing significant dust and particulate air pollution.
3. Whether the streambed of Fish Canyon can be restored as Vulcan asserts.
4. Whether an existing trail on an easement over Vulcan's property can be relocated suitably for hikers.

The Sierra Club also believes that the Draft EIR has not included discussion of meaningful alternatives to the project, as required by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

The complete Draft EIR for the project is posted on the website of the City of Azuza. See also the City of Duarte's home page for information on the city's concerns. Information on Vulcan is available at their website. Extensive critical analysis of the project is posted on the Azuza-based citizen group website opposed to it.

The Sierra Club's San Gabriel Valley Task Force encourages Club members to express their concerns regarding the proposed mining expansion. Contact Task Force Chair Joan Licari for further information. Join the Montebello Hills Task Force for documentary Split Estate. For details, call (213)387-4287 x208 or become a fan on facebook.