Mona Shield Payne / Special to the Sun
This photograph from December 2008 shows a view of the Las Vegas Strip from the Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area. Nearby, two mining companies are seeking approval from the Bureau of Land Management to start a 640-acre rock-excavation operation, agitating Henderson residents concerned about dust and noise.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009 | 12:44 p.m.
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Clark County commissioners unanimously voted today for a resolution opposing proposed mining operations in the Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area.
Some 4,000 residents who live in the Anthem area of Henderson, about 3.5 miles from the proposed mining site, have signed petitions opposing the operations. U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., and U.S. Reps. Dina Titus, D-Nev., Shelly Berkley, D-Nev., and Dean Heller, R-Nev., also have gone on the record in opposition to the proposal.
The County Commission’s statement will be sent to the Bureau of Land Management to be included with the federal agency’s environmental impact study.
In part, the county’s resolution said that “numerous Clark County citizens are very concerned about the impacts from mineral mining and processing to the quality of the air and public health, in addition to concerns about noise, vibration from materials blasting, increased industrial and commercial traffic in the local area, and proposed 24-hour operations.”
The 640-acre site for the proposed aggregate mining operation is located on federal land within unincorporated Clark County, east of Interstate 15 about mile south of Sloan Road. Henderson annexed the land surrounding the site.
The proposed mining operation is 3.5 miles from the communities of Anthem and Southern Highlands and a mile from the approved boundary of Inspirada.
A mining claim exists on the land, which the BLM has designated for sale. Two companies, Service Rock and Cemex, have proposed separate aggregate mining pits that could be operated around the clock, seven days a week for as long as 30 years.
Aggregate is used in construction and the manufacture of concrete and asphalt.
The site rests in Commissioner Steve Sisolak’s district. He said he’s met with many residents who live nearby and are concerned that the blasting and dust from the mining would lower property values and harm their health.
“The neighbors are up in arms,” he said. “A lot of them have health-related issues regarding asthma and breathing and so forth.”
The BLM has been working on the environmental impact statement since December 2007 and expects a draft version for public review in October or November.
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