The Missouri Department of Natural Resources gave residents of Ste. Genevieve County false hope they would seriously scrutinize the potential environmental danger and health risk associated with the NextGen Silica sand mine near Hawn State Park; that never happened.
From the statements and behavior of the DNR Mining and Land Reclamation Office, I can tell you with almost 100 percent certainty the mine is approved. Several local sources have confirmed the mine site is now being logged, preparing the land for the upcoming mine facility. The DNR probably approved the open-pit sand mine months ago before the total failure of a public meeting from a presentation and information standpoint. The audience could not hear speakers, could not properly view the materials, and struggled to understand confusing industry jargon. Local residents and concerned Missourians, in the least, expected a fair process; they did not receive one.
From what we have seen in the last few months, the state does not care how many people are against a destructive mine operation where only a tiny fraction of people benefit from a natural resource product not even intended for use in Missouri. This goes against the idea of a responsive government accountable to the people it serves, especially when residents express anxiety and concern about the health of themselves and their family members. Is safety in our state really a concern or not? We have enough cancer and poor health outcomes in Missouri, already. Our citizens sickened by industrial pollution is 100 percent unacceptable and their suffering should be prevented in the future through an honest appraisal using the most up-to-date scientific methods.
The state of Missouri’s plan is for you the taxpayer to finance the widening of Highway 32 from Hawn State Park to I-55, costing residents millions of dollars on behalf of NextGen Silica. It is like a mining company owns Missouri and lives here, not you. The mine company gets everything they want, you get nothing, but ruined land and a disgusting hole in the ground they plan on selling back to us in the future.
What is truly astonishing and terrifying is the Department of Natural Resources does not care about your underground aquifer, either. This freshwater drinking supply, filtered by mother nature, keeps you living on your property, without it you would have to leave. The mine company NextGen Silica uses toxic chemicals on site to “wash” or separate silica from the bedrock. In other states, these industrial solvents have leached into the ground, contaminating other water supplies in America almost forever.
The mission statement of the Department of Natural Resources wants residents to think it’s primary goal is to protect our air, land, water, and residents from environmental harm. Their pro-business behavior, offering zero resistance to an industry with history of massive pollution and human catastrophes, an industry in which the DNR is supposed to police with a healthy skepticism and critical eye, has only sowed frustration and distrust in a vulnerable state park system depending solely on public goodwill and taxpayer support.
We have only a few crucial weeks until the official announcement of the mine approval and still have time to contact those in our state accountable for this cynical, dishonest process like Governor Mike Parson, Director of the DNR Dru Buntin, and the MO DNR Office of Mining and Land Reclamation.
Tell them they should not approve the mine, (Permit No. 1211), until an environmental impact study has been conducted first, not last, after the fact. We should be a science-based society in the name of protecting our residents and parks, not a shallow, myopic group willing to sacrifice the future for someone else’s profit.
If you wait after the official announcement around July 4, this will go into litigation, and then it is truly out of your hands. Right now, the mine site is being logged in preparation to begin operation in months. Litigation could take years. Once this reaches the courts, then it is not only completely out of your hands altogether, but maybe too late to save Hawn State Park and the surrounding area.
Matt Ankney
SAVE HAWN!