Mondovi (WQOW) - A local
community had a chance to voice its concerns over the growing frac sand
industry Saturday. A volunteer group hosted the forum, which featured a
question and answer session.
"I'm not really
opposed to mining, but I want good rules in place," said Lou Anne Roby, a
member of the Buffalo County Defenders.
There were over 40 people at the Marten Center
in Mondovi Saturday, hoping to learn everything they could about frac
sand.
"Our moratorium has
been extended so that we can get a good ordinance in place. Part of the reason
I put this on is so that we could inform people about what we need in an
ordinance."
A volunteer group called the Buffalo
County Defenders hosted the event. They encouraged those who showed up to ask
questions about the industry.
"I'm wondering what
the actual statistics are for this job creation. How many local people are
actually hired? For how long? How many people are brought in?" asked one
of the people in attendance.
"A lot of people in
this area are not skilled in mining. They don't have the skills to do what
needs to be done with technical pieces. A lot of work is being done with
technology, and not everyone may have that," said Pat Popple, a guest
speaker.
"These
mines depicted in Chippewa
County...has there been
reclamation begun?" asked another person.
"In Chippewa Falls there were two wetlands mitigated,
its called mitigation," Popple said.
"One of the cons is
that it really, tremendously affects the property values. Have you developed
any statistics about that?" a visitor asked.
"How many people
really want to live near a train?" You know? Is my property going to be
valued as high as it was before? We've had a down market anyway on all of our
properties probably. So that's a really good question, and to get to the honest
truth about that is almost impossible," said Popple.
Those were just some of the
questions raised at the forum. There was also discussion on air quality as well
as road and water usage.
