On Wed, 20 Oct 1999 MBlanchrd at aol.com wrote:


> I went to the Thurston County Planning Office today to find out more
> information about the asphalt plant.


The Holroyd gravel mining operation on the existing site is not exactly
representative of a pristine setting replete with all of the native species
found in so many parts of the lower Nisqually. It is also a mile or two
from the estuary. There may be significant harm posed by development and
operation of an asphalt plant in this location but the situation needs to
be presented accurately. The initial message made it seem as though
the sounds of rock crushing and the smell of asphalt were to become a
part of the daily experience of birders on Nisqually refuge's dike trail.
In fact, most visitors to the refuge today probably have no idea how much
rock crushing and conveyor belting and truck loading are going on at the
site where the asphalt plant is proposed to go. Will the new plant really
destroy riparian habitat or extend at all beyond the existing boundaries
of the gravel operation? This, I would like to know. Let's look at the real
issues with this proposal, not some misrepresentation of it.

Kelly McAllister