FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Protesters gathered outside the Washington county courthouse Thursday night to protest the noise living by the Hunt-Rogers Mining Quarry off Wedington. They say they don't feel their rights have been honored by the government:
"The noise begins pretty routinely about 5 a.m. and they do have conditions for unlimited dynamite blast through the week, so the ground rumbles and so does our nervous systems," Protester organizer Jennifer Bruner said.
Bruner says she doesn’t want to see the mine expanded.
"It's a very peaceful community right by Hamstring Creek. We just kind of want our voice to be heard, we'd like for our community to listen to us."
Protesters say their plea was supposed to have been heard in Thursday night's quorum court meeting, but it was not on the meeting agenda.
"We were taken off the schedule. Basically, all we've heard is that this decision will be left to the county judge's office," Bruner explained.
Washington County Judge Patrick Deakins says the county has done its part to make sure the quarry is following all rules and regulations.
"I know that we receive a lot of complaints about blasting, and that kind of thing. That is all monitored by the Arkansas Department of Environmental Equality. We have really no say as a county in terms of those types of regulations from my standpoint the applicant has rights to. They've met the conditions to get this expansion and so I have no legal grounds to step in and try to deny that," Explained Deakins.
The mine expansion would increase its size to more than 107 acres.
"Now, that it's permitted ... it'll be up to the mining operation as to when they expand. I don't know when that coincides with their operational goals but they will essentially have the ability to do that at their convenience," Deakins said.
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