Gravel company officials woo residents over Three Kids Mine

Thursday, April 29, 1999 | 11:22 a.m.

A gravel company seeking state and local permission to clean up a closed manganese mine for future development sought support Wednesday night from skeptical Henderson residents worried about dust and water pollution.

It was a move to woo neighbors of the property -- where owners want to begin gravel operations with an eye to building a golf course and custom homes there in 20 years -- but little more. Three Kids Mine on Lake Mead Drive is in Clark County, and the Henderson Citizens Advisory Committee has no jurisdiction over any activities there.

However, Committee Chairman Manny Gomez suggested that the Three Kids property owners should apply for annexation into Henderson. Since new housing developments are as close as a mile away from the mine, operations there affect Henderson residents, he said.

Hollywood Gravel Co. Controller Dixie Jackson gave a short presentation about its attempts to get the necessary permits to begin mining gravel, accepting construction debris to fill three enormous pits and then reclaiming the site.

The Nevada Division of Environmental Protection and the Southern Nevada Water Authority are concerned about potential contamination of the ground water, Las Vegas Wash and Lake Mead, the valley's major drinking water source, from heavy metals and diesel fuel found on the property.

Anything that could affect the Las Vegas Wash or Lake Mead raises concerns for the water authority, Kim Zikmund, the authority's Las Vegas Wash project coordinator, said after the meeting at Henderson City Hall.

Before any work can begin, the company must get a conditional use permit from the Clark County Commission. Hollywood Gravel has requested a 10-year permit to allow gravel mining and reclamation, Jackson said.

A hearing is scheduled before the County Commission on Wednesday. Commissioner Dario Herrera, whose district includes the mine site, has vowed not to allow the company to proceed because of too many unanswered questions about health and safety.

The Nevada Division of Environmental Protection has told the gravel company it must do extensive tests to find out what remains in the area after manganese was mined there during World Wars I and II and the Korean War.

Hollywood Gravel's own environmental consultant discovered diesel fuel in the soils high enough to trigger a report to the state.