Our cause to protect the health and safety of residents of Berkley/Freetown, MA and the ecology of the area is now on You Tube. Check out the video links below.
Berkley and Freetown, MA - Quarry Oppositionhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxUec7tQLHY
Berkley and Freetown, MA - Freetown Residents Reaction to Quarryhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imvmA1v4GKo
Berkley and Freetown, MA - Quarry Health Issues Part 1 (American Lung Association)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8HEBLnkxqY
Berkley and Freetown, MA - Quarry Health Issues Part 2 (Green Futures Statement)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-1LM9J5kFg
Berkley and Freetown, MA - Quarry Health Issues Part 3 (Toxics Action Statement)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLyj6OCSj-I
Berkley and Freetown, MA - How to Document Quarry Blasting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEG1bY0HYp8
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Friday, April 23, 2010
Please Make a Donation
We need your help. Please help us to protect the public health and public safety of the residents of Assonet and Berkley MA as well as to protect the environment, important biomes, threatened species, vernal pool,s Quaker Brook and the Assonet River. Please donate to our cause. Checks or money orders can be mailed to:
Citizens for Health, Safety, Ecology
PO Box 492
Assonet, MA 02702
No donation is too large or too small. Every bit helps.
Thank you.
Citizens for Health, Safety, Ecology
PO Box 492
Assonet, MA 02702
No donation is too large or too small. Every bit helps.
Thank you.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Below are statements from a Freetown resident expressing his views about the Cape Cod Aggregtes quarry operation in a residential neighborhood in Freetown.
I can see no positive aspects in operating a quarry in a residential neighborhood. If the quarry disrupts or contaminates the water, causes property damage, or health problems; the burden of proof falls on the homeowner creating tens of thousands of dollars in homeowner expense. Also having a quarry in a residential neighborhood lowers the value of your home. It has the potential to create severe health, safety and environmental issues. It has the potential to cause damage to homes and wells. In my opinion, there is not enough regulation or oversight of the operation to ensure the public safety.
The question we must answer is this; is having a quarry operation in a residential neighborhood, in the best interests for the tax-paying residents of Freetown/Berkley? We believe it is not. It may place residents in harms way, damage and devalue property, and will cost the residents and the town both aggravation and money.
The residents of Freetown/Berkley ask that their quality of life not be jeopardized. We wish to be allowed to live in the homes we have invested in, in a relatively safe, healthy environment with our families and children.
Lenard St.
I can see no positive aspects in operating a quarry in a residential neighborhood. If the quarry disrupts or contaminates the water, causes property damage, or health problems; the burden of proof falls on the homeowner creating tens of thousands of dollars in homeowner expense. Also having a quarry in a residential neighborhood lowers the value of your home. It has the potential to create severe health, safety and environmental issues. It has the potential to cause damage to homes and wells. In my opinion, there is not enough regulation or oversight of the operation to ensure the public safety.
The question we must answer is this; is having a quarry operation in a residential neighborhood, in the best interests for the tax-paying residents of Freetown/Berkley? We believe it is not. It may place residents in harms way, damage and devalue property, and will cost the residents and the town both aggravation and money.
The residents of Freetown/Berkley ask that their quality of life not be jeopardized. We wish to be allowed to live in the homes we have invested in, in a relatively safe, healthy environment with our families and children.
Lenard St.
Helath Concerns
Below is a statement from a Freetown resident regarding concerns about the CCA quarry operating in a residential neighborhood.
Rock crushing quarry operations can create fine rock dust, which can travel for miles in the air and bury deep into the lungs causing respiratory problems and irritating already existing respiratory conditions. Silica dust has been proven to cause lung cancer, silicosis, tuberculosis, scleroderma, kidney failure, and immune system disorders.
Some people neighboring this quarry operation already have serious health conditions. Dust from the quarry operation would be extremely detrimental to these people who already have fragile health.
Lenard Street
Rock crushing quarry operations can create fine rock dust, which can travel for miles in the air and bury deep into the lungs causing respiratory problems and irritating already existing respiratory conditions. Silica dust has been proven to cause lung cancer, silicosis, tuberculosis, scleroderma, kidney failure, and immune system disorders.
Some people neighboring this quarry operation already have serious health conditions. Dust from the quarry operation would be extremely detrimental to these people who already have fragile health.
Lenard Street
Health/ Water Concerns
Below are statements form a Freetown resident regarding neighborhood concerns about the CCA quarry.
Quarry operations may cause a serious threat to human health when situated close to residential homes, affecting the water we drink, the air we breathe.
Currently CCA’s operation owns land which borders Quaker Brook and Freetown Conservation Commission Land. All homes in the area get their drinking water from private wells. We have concerns that blasting may cause wells to go dry or contaminate drinking water with toxins including radon, nitrates and benzene. Each of these contaminates has been linked to a serious health hazard, such as stomach cancer, Hodgkin’s disease, and leukemia.
No hydrology tests, pump tests, or environmental impact studies have performed by independent parties not under report to the quarry company.
What type of environmental protection is being offered to the citizens of Freetown?
Quaker Brook feeds into the Assonet River. What assurance is there to citizens of Freetown/Berkley, that CCA is in compliance with the Clean Waters Act or the State Rivers Protection Act in regards to the Assonet River?
Can our elected officials guarantee that town bylaws are stringent enough to ensure that the Clean Water Act, and the State Rivers Protection Act regulations, EPA rules and regulations are being adhered to by CCA?
What type of environmental protection is being offered to the citizens of Freetown/Berkely?
Lenard St.
Quarry operations may cause a serious threat to human health when situated close to residential homes, affecting the water we drink, the air we breathe.
Currently CCA’s operation owns land which borders Quaker Brook and Freetown Conservation Commission Land. All homes in the area get their drinking water from private wells. We have concerns that blasting may cause wells to go dry or contaminate drinking water with toxins including radon, nitrates and benzene. Each of these contaminates has been linked to a serious health hazard, such as stomach cancer, Hodgkin’s disease, and leukemia.
No hydrology tests, pump tests, or environmental impact studies have performed by independent parties not under report to the quarry company.
What type of environmental protection is being offered to the citizens of Freetown?
Quaker Brook feeds into the Assonet River. What assurance is there to citizens of Freetown/Berkley, that CCA is in compliance with the Clean Waters Act or the State Rivers Protection Act in regards to the Assonet River?
Can our elected officials guarantee that town bylaws are stringent enough to ensure that the Clean Water Act, and the State Rivers Protection Act regulations, EPA rules and regulations are being adhered to by CCA?
What type of environmental protection is being offered to the citizens of Freetown/Berkely?
Lenard St.
Flyrock Concerns
Below are comments form a resident regarding flyrock concerns for abutters near the Cape Cod Aggregates quarry site in Freetown, MA.
I am concerned about fly rock, that is small small rocks or boulders flying through the air like projectiles. It can cause considerable damage. Fly rock can and has injured people. It also can and has killed people in the past.
For example, I saw on TV, (Fox 25 News) in the spring of 2009 at the West Roxbury quarry (Owned by family members of the CCA quarry),fly rock caused damage to someone’s home located in a residential neighborhood. A gentleman stated that stones from the quarry traveled 700 feet and knocked down his stonewall.
What kind of safety protection is being provided to the citizens of Freetown/Berkley?
Lenard St.
I am concerned about fly rock, that is small small rocks or boulders flying through the air like projectiles. It can cause considerable damage. Fly rock can and has injured people. It also can and has killed people in the past.
For example, I saw on TV, (Fox 25 News) in the spring of 2009 at the West Roxbury quarry (Owned by family members of the CCA quarry),fly rock caused damage to someone’s home located in a residential neighborhood. A gentleman stated that stones from the quarry traveled 700 feet and knocked down his stonewall.
What kind of safety protection is being provided to the citizens of Freetown/Berkley?
Lenard St.
Noise Pollution
Below are a resident's statements about the noise experienced in a Freetown residential neighborhood form the Cape Cod Aggregates quarry operation.
Rock crushing operations create a constant noise and quarry blasting is even louder. The noise from these blasts are very loud. Currently I cannot sit outside on my deck for lunch or to just read a book and relax, without the constant noise from the quarry. What once was a relatively quiet residential area has now changed to a noisy industrial zone.
Lenard St.
Rock crushing operations create a constant noise and quarry blasting is even louder. The noise from these blasts are very loud. Currently I cannot sit outside on my deck for lunch or to just read a book and relax, without the constant noise from the quarry. What once was a relatively quiet residential area has now changed to a noisy industrial zone.
Lenard St.
Blasting Affects Neighborhoods
The once relatively quiet neighborhood where I live is now disturbed by blasts that are occurring on a regular basis. Last week there were two, Monday April 5th and Friday April 9th
Here are some of the key issues that are bothering my fellow neighbors and me.
Vibration
We believe that ground vibrations from quarry operations may cause structural damage to homes . Every time there is a CCA blast, it is very loud and shakes my house quite extensively. It feels like the equivalent to a truck or train hitting your house. I have been in earthquakes before, on January 1994 at Northridge, Ca, and in September 2006 at Bar Harbor, Me, and believe me the blasts are equivalent to an earthquake. Last week there were 2 blasts that shook my house and they were very loud. I feel that I am living in a war zone. The question is how many more blasts will it take before permanent structural damage occurs to my home or to a neighbor’s home.?
Since homeowners insurance does not cover damage due to blasting, the individual homeowner is held responsible to try and recover any damages.
Lenard Street
Here are some of the key issues that are bothering my fellow neighbors and me.
Vibration
We believe that ground vibrations from quarry operations may cause structural damage to homes . Every time there is a CCA blast, it is very loud and shakes my house quite extensively. It feels like the equivalent to a truck or train hitting your house. I have been in earthquakes before, on January 1994 at Northridge, Ca, and in September 2006 at Bar Harbor, Me, and believe me the blasts are equivalent to an earthquake. Last week there were 2 blasts that shook my house and they were very loud. I feel that I am living in a war zone. The question is how many more blasts will it take before permanent structural damage occurs to my home or to a neighbor’s home.?
Since homeowners insurance does not cover damage due to blasting, the individual homeowner is held responsible to try and recover any damages.
Lenard Street
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Public Forum with CCA
CCA gave a presentation to the public on Tuesday, April 13th at the Berkley Community School. David Peterson from CCA showed a power point presentation on items that aggregates are used for. There was no new information in the presentation, nothing that has not been stated to the public previously or that is not on their web site. The newspaper announcement of the presentation promised that CCA would discuss the Freetown quarry operation, however there was no information presented about the Freetown operation or any plans for a Berkley proposal. When asked by residents to get to pertenant information about the company's operations and plans in Berkley/Freetown David Peterson said the meeting was for those people who did not know what aggragetes were. However, CCA called and invited direct abutters to attend.
A room full of Berkley and Freetown residents expressed their dissatisfaction with experiencing their homes shake, their animals become nervous and agitated, the loud sound of the explosions and constant noise from the site. Several residents were also greatly concerned about their properties becoming "unsellable" because of now being located near a quarry. Dave Peterson said he had no intentions of buying any homes to enable residents to leave. When residents complained that their homes shake he said unsympathetically, "They are going to." When people complained about animals becoming nervous and upset for days following each blast, David Pertson said again, "They are going to. Animals feel more of the ground vibration then humans do. They are more sensitive to it." He offered no remedies. Several times during the meeting David Peterson had no answers for resident questions.
After the meeting one direct abutter said, "I can't believe they think they can just come into our neighborhood and destroy our quality of life, affect our homes and think that we are just suppose to sit here and take it."
A room full of Berkley and Freetown residents expressed their dissatisfaction with experiencing their homes shake, their animals become nervous and agitated, the loud sound of the explosions and constant noise from the site. Several residents were also greatly concerned about their properties becoming "unsellable" because of now being located near a quarry. Dave Peterson said he had no intentions of buying any homes to enable residents to leave. When residents complained that their homes shake he said unsympathetically, "They are going to." When people complained about animals becoming nervous and upset for days following each blast, David Pertson said again, "They are going to. Animals feel more of the ground vibration then humans do. They are more sensitive to it." He offered no remedies. Several times during the meeting David Peterson had no answers for resident questions.
After the meeting one direct abutter said, "I can't believe they think they can just come into our neighborhood and destroy our quality of life, affect our homes and think that we are just suppose to sit here and take it."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
