20200803_N-Lew_RDUAA

From: Natalie Lew
To: Wrenn, Brian L; NCMininaProaram
Cc: umsteadcoalition(nbgmail.com; Wiley.Nickel(nbncleg.net; david.cox(araleighnc.gov; mstohlman(abnc.rr.com;
Grea.Ford(cawakeaov.com; contactaov
Subject: [External] Rebuttal to RDUAA"s letter about Wake Stone"s Triangle Quarry Permit Modification Request
Date: Monday, August 3, 2020 4:03:56 PM
Attachments: To DEO-DEMLR rebuttal to RDUAANs support letter final.pdf
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Good afternoon Mr. Wrenn:
Please see the attached letter submitted as a public comment regarding Wake Stone's Triangle
Quarry Permit Modification Request (92-10).
-Natalie Lew
It is the time you have wasted for your rose that makes your rose so important... from "The Little
Prince"

August 3, 2020
To Brian Wrenn, Director of the Division of Energy, Minerals and Land Resources at DEQ:
Dear Mr. Wrenn:
Please include this document as a public comment to be considered for Wake Stone's Triangle Quarry Mining Permit
Modification Request (92-10).
The following is a rebuttal to the 23/Jun/2020 letter submitted to DEQ by RDUAA CEO, Michael Landguth, as part of
the public hearing process for Wake Stone's Triangle Quarry Mining Permit Modification Request (92-10). Each of
the sections below is a statement or a few statements from that letter followed by a few comments regarding those
statements.
The context of Mr. Landguth's letter is important. Section 7 of the Mineral Lease between the RDUAA and Wake
Stone Corporation states "Lessor [RDUAA] further agrees that during the Lease Term Lessor willfully cooperate with
Leesee [Wake Stone Corporation] in petitioning for appropriate federal, state, and local permits..." Mr. Landguth's
letter is required by the Mineral Lease agreement and may or may not represent the sentiments of the Airport
Authority or others represented therein.
"The Authority's Board voted in March 2019 to generate new revenue through a land -lease agreement with Wake
Stone that would help fund critical infrastructure projects, including replacement of the airport's primary runway,
more gates and improved amenities."
➢ This is not just a land -lease. Page 2 of the "Option and Lease Agreement" refers to this as a Mineral Lease
Agreement. This is important to focus on since this emphasizes that the land will be destroyed by mining
operations. Calling it a land -lease is misleading. While the land can be leased, the minerals are being sold.
The land is deeded to the public. The public does not want to sell the minerals under this irreplaceable
forest adjacent to Umstead State Park.
➢ As noted in the next section, the March 2019 "Mineral Lease" provides almost meaningless funds to the
RDU Airport for its current infrastructure needs.
➢ Page 3 of the March 2019 "Mineral Lease" indicates that "...Lessor [RDUAA] shall have the right but not
obligation, to accept some or all of these materials to use as fill on the Lessor's property [RDU airport] for
such purposes as the Lessor may deem appropriate." What would those purposes include? What is to be
done with the excavated material (e.g., dirt or overburden) from Odd Fellows as the site is prepped for
mining operations? Could it be stored at the airport? If it could be stored at the airport, then it could be
used as fill dirt for any airport project. Will any of the excavated material be used at the airport or sold to
NCDOT for a highway project?
➢ How will the overburden be transported to the RDU Airport? The Mining Permit Application (page 4) states
that "... no quarry products (including overburden) will be hauled from the site via Old Reedy Creek Road.
Installation of the planned bridge over Crabtree Creek will facilitate overburden removal through the existing
quarry site and Harrison Avenue entrance." Based upon an estimated volume of overburden, this would
mean there would be approximately 500 truckloads of dirt per day for 2 years being taken over the new
Crabtree Creek bridge. These trucks would be leaving the Triangle Quarry via the Harrison Ave. entrance
which is adjacent to a main entrance of the Park. An additional 500 quarry trucks per day, on top of the
current 500 to 1,000 trucks per day at the Harrison Avenue entrance will only compound the current traffic
and dust conflicts with William B. Umstead State Park users trying to access (via cars, bikes, running,
walking) the main Reedy Creek Park entrance on Harrison Avenue at the same location.
➢ To get to RDU, Wake Stone's trucks would travel out the Harrison Avenue entrance of Wake Stone, then
onto the already crowded section of 1-40, and then to the airport via Aviation Parkway or Airport Blvd.
NLew, public comment dated 3/Aug/2020 Page 1 of 5

➢ There are 2 existing quarries that have overburden READY to give to the airport: Martin Marietta's Raleigh -
Durham quarry off of Westgate (who would simply travel down Westgate Road to RDU) and Hanson's
Crabtree Quarry off of Duraleigh Road.
"The agreement is conservatively projected to generate $24 million for the airport from a 25-year, 105-acre
expansion of the adjacent existing quarry."
➢ The stated $24 million amount is misleading. That number does not reflect the Net Present Value (NPV) and
is based on levels of economic growth from recent years continuing uninterrupted through the life of the
lease. The agreement only guarantees $8.5 million, so revenue will realistically fall somewhere between
these amounts. In addition, the "Mineral Lease" is structured to yield very little public funds during the first
10 years or more. Even if the maximum production was reached, the NPV is $12.7 Million (according to an
August 16, 2019 letter from the RDUAA to NC Senator Wiley Nickel). The NPV on the likely outcome due to
the current economic downturn is substantially less.
➢ The Mineral Lease specifically indicates that the "Lessee (Wake Stone] shall pay the Lessor [RDUAA] the sum
of One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100,000) per year as an advance annual minimum royalty for Lease
years 1-5." So, in the first 5 years, RDUAA only gets $500,000. This is a pittance. What critical infrastructure
needs can be addressed now with $100,000? What critical infrastructure needs can $500,000 get for the
airport?
➢ The Annual Minimum Royalty will increase to "Two Hundred Thousand Dollars ($200,000) for Lease Years
6-10..." So, at year 10, the RDUAA now has an additional $1,000,000 for a total of only $1.5 million over
the first 10 year. Still, this is a pittance ... and it takes 10 years to get.
➢ Annual Sales Royalties don't kick in for many years, so for the first several years, there probably won't be
any additional monies given to RDUAA.
➢ Wake Stone appraised the Odd Fellows at about $2 million.
➢ A local conservancy group appraised Odd Fellows at about $6.5 million, over 3 times more than Wake
Stone's value. This conservancy group offered to purchase the land for incorporation into Umstead as the
land has been on the state park's critical acquisition list for decades. RDUAA keeps claiming how desperate
they are for immediate funds for critical infrastructure projects. The $6.46 million now affords a much
better revenue return for RDU under most scenarios.
"The land -lease agreement also requires Wake Stone to provide $3.6 million for a third party to lease 151 acres of
airport land for mountain biking recreation."
➢ The Mineral Lease agreement actually says "Lessor [RDUAA] has agreed to the concept of a potential lease
with a governmental body or qualified non-profit for an approximately 151 acre parcel, to the north and
west of the Premises, for use as a mountain bike and relate activities recreation area (the "Mountain Bike
Lease"). Lessee [Wake Stone] agrees to make additional payments to Lessor [RDUAA]... whether or not
Lessor has entered into the Mountain Bike Lease."
➢ FAA regulations prevent the airport from spending revenue for purposes unrelated to aviation.
➢ In lay terms, the Mineral Lease says Wake Stone has to give RDUAA money for a potential lease for a
recreation area, whether or not the Mountain Bike Lease is executed. There is no guarantee of a recreation
area and even if there is a recreation area, it is only temporary as RDUAA's Master Plan calls for the area to
be developed and a government agency will not be able to continue paying the high lease fees once Wake
Stone reaches the specified maximum limit at year 10.
"Wake Stone will contribute an additional $3 million at the end of the agreement to reclaim the site with recreational
features."
➢ The future value of $3 million, 25-39 years from now will not afford real reclamation, it may not even be
enough for permanent barriers and fencing, and may require supplemental public funds to adequately
secure for public safety.
➢ Mr. Bratton's 7/Jul/2020 letter "The RDU parcel is not large enough to have a fully functioning quarry pit,
crushing plant, and sales yard." So, Wake Stone plans on making the entire RDU parcel (aka Odd Fellows)
into a pit (and have very minimal distances between the property boundary and pit edge). That is all this
parcel will be ... a big pit. The material will be taken to the Triangle Quarry site for processing. There won't
NLew, public comment dated 3/Aug/2020 Page 2 of 5

be enough surface land left at Odd Fellows to have recreational features. A fence around a quarry pit
partially filled with water that one cannot swim in is a joke of a reclamation plan.
➢ A simple examination of the submitted site plan submitted with Wake Stone Corporation's Mining Permit
Application will quickly reveal that the "Reclamation" plan submitted as a water color sketch is not feasible.
The pit perimeter road, the pit perimeter, the berms, steep slopes along Crabtree Creek and fencing
consume the small tract, leaving insufficient land for a viable recreational "afterlife."
"It is important to note that Wake Stone has been a good neighbor to the airport and nearby state park for decades,
having operated an adjacent quarry since the 1980's without any environmental violations from the N.C. Department
of Environmental Quality (DEQ)."
➢ The Triangle Quarry is NOT a neighbor to the airport. The airport facilities are miles from the Triangle
Quarry. The Triangle Quarry it is a neighbor to William B. Umstead State Park, but an incompatible one.
Mr. Landguth does not speak for NC State Parks and such comments from the RDUAA should be
disregarded. The May 8, 2020 letter from the NC Division of Parks and Recreation (aka NC State Parks), as
well as the documents within the current Mining Permit files at DEQ indicate just the opposite. Wake Stone
has NOT been a good neighbor to Umstead. Just consider the public hearing and over 1,800 public
comments. The vast majority of the comments do not suggest a good neighbor. The current quarry is the
opposite of a "good neighbor" with the truck and dust conflicts at the popular Reedy Creek Park entrance
accessed off Harrison Avenue, air quality degradation, water quality issues, habitat destruction, noise,
killing Park trees, diverting sediment laden waters into the Park, and more.
➢ The DEQ files for the existing Wake Stone Corporation's Triangle quarry do show "Violations" as well as
numerous "Deficiencies" and complaints. In addition, many citizen complaints are not answered, or,
perhaps only made verbally, preventing a written record to the files. In addition, the administrative process
for having the environmental "violation" is difficult as they are logged as "deficiencies" due to the current
enforcement procedures. Most would agree that the "Deficiencies" of a major collapse of Crabtree Creek
in 1992 that resulted in 90 percent of Crabtree Creek to be filled in, opaque white plumbs being discharged
into Crabtree Creek, untreated water discharged into the Park and killing large Park trees, destruction of
the "undisturbed" property and Crabtree buffers, white dust depositing well into the Park, and more to be
equivalent to "environmental violations."
➢ Again, just look at the comments given during the public hearing.
"In the years leading up to the land -lease agreement the Authority held 10 public workshops and encouraged Wake
Stone to seek input from local governments, the broader community and groups who had concerns about how airport
land should be used. The existing mineral lease, which is more valuable than Wake Stone's initial offer, is the result
of that thoughtful process."
➢ The process mentioned excluded non -aviation lands: the Oddfellows tract, 286, Lake Crabtree County Park,
and other areas. The RDUAA consultant verbally indicated several times publicly that RDUAA instructed
them to show only the quarry and to NOT evaluate any land -use alternatives. None of the options
considered ever deviated from the June 2016 version for these non -aviation lands that was presented to s
surprised public.
➢ I attended almost all of these "public" workshops, so I know firsthand. Communication was one-way - it
was RDUAA telling the public what they were going to do. Yes, RDUAA presented options for the runways
and terminals, but they did NOT present options or alternatives for the non -aviation lands. Yes, the public
submitted comments, but there was never any feedback on these comments and never any two-way
discussions about these comments. RDUAA received more than 11,000 comments through their portal and
through an online petition. No comments were submitted in favor of the quarry. Most comments were in
favor of preserving the bike -pedestrian trails at Lake Crabtree County Park. There was absolutely no formal,
public evaluation of the land use alternatives. There is no public process unless two-way, public discussion
occurs.
➢ RDUAA lied to the public by telling us early on that there were no plans to do anything with Odd Fellows.
We were blindsided when the land use portion of the Master Plan was announced and saw that a quarry
was planned for Odd Fellows.
NLew, public comment dated 3/Aug/2020 Page 3 of 5

➢ I have attended a significant number of RDUAA meetings since the quarry plans were announced. Even in
that venue, RDUAA did not engage with the public. It was the same old one-way communication ... RDUAA
telling the public what they were going to do.
➢ The public outcry is being ignored and RDUAA's regional image is greatly diminished.
➢ The Regional Transportation Alliance (RTA), which is a program of the Raleigh Chamber (of Commerce),
created the "RDU Airport Infrastructure Development (AID) Task Force" to partner with RDUAA. The
findings and recommendations released on January 17, 2020 can be found here
https://Ietsgetmoving.org/priorities/rdu-funding/ and include:
0 P. 6 and 12 "RDU could do a value engineering review of entire 2040 master plan to build regional
goodwill"
P. 6 "RDU should revisit entire 2040 master plan given the reality of an adjacent beloved state
park"
P. 12 "The situation surrounding RDU's lands and adjacent Umstead Park has been a costly
distraction. RDU should revisit entire 2040 master plan given the reality of an adjacent, beloved
state park"
P. 12 "RDU may not be a natural partner with Umstead, but it needs to become one"
"At the time the Authority entered into the lease, Raleigh -Durham International Airport (RDU) was experiencing
record growth and financial projections showed its traditional funding sources — such as grants, parking, airline
service fees, terminal rentals and concessions revenue - would not cover the capital expenses needed to maintain
current infrastructure and accommodate increased passenger traffic, more flights and larger aircraft. The COVID-19
pandemic hit the U.S. one year later in March 2020 and revenue at airports across the country plunged to levels that
are unprecedented and unsustainable. RDU passenger traffic reached a mid -April low of just 3.5% of traffic from a
year earlier and remains 87% down. Industry experts predict it will take three to five years to reach 80% of pre -
pandemic levels. The prolonged effects of the pandemic have intensified RDU's funding needs and underscored the
need for alternate sources of funding. Faced with a long road to recovery, it is more important now than ever for RDU
to diversify its funding sources and not depend solely on aeronautical revenue."
➢ This statement makes a stronger case that The Conservation Fund offer is superior to the Wake Stone
agreement.
"The land -lease agreement executed by the Authority is in the best interest of the airport and the community, and
we respectfully ask that DEQ grant Wake Stone's permit request."
➢ RDU has failed to demonstrate the quarry will be in either its best interest or that of the public. The real
beneficiary is the private Wake Stone Corporation, who stand to make almost $500,000,000 with no
liabilities by selling our public resources.
➢ This mineral lease (which is really a sale of the mineral rights) is great for Wake Stone. They get to tear up
the land, earn a bunch of money, and walk away after one year or so of so-called reclamation efforts, leaving
all liability to the public. I bet at that point, the fact that this land is deeded to four public entities will really
be felt. Right now, the RDUAA is forcefully touting their management control of the area. Once the land
has been destroyed and there are liability concerns, my guess is that they will readily hand it over to the
deeded owners, wiping their hands of any liability.
➢ This mineral lease (which is really a sale of the mineral rights) is horrible for the community as it negatively
impacts two highly used entrances to Umstead State Park, it will destroy the Dunn's home that will be about
200' from the pit edge, it will harm Crabtree Creek, it has negative impacts to the Town of Cary's Old Reedy
Creek trail head area of which the town has spent a lot of money, it has potential negative impacts to North
Cary Water Reclamation plant and their one lane bridge on Old Reedy Creek Road, etc.
««««««««««««
The land for this new pit was formerly owned by a benevolent organization called Odd Fellows Fellowship
(Independent Order of Odd Fellows). Odd Fellows encouraged public use of this land by both groups like the Boy
Scouts and the public in general. So, the public has been using this land for decades, since 1958. This land was taken
from the Odd Fellows Fellowship for public use — a proposed runway. The 1977 EIS Study by the RDUAA promised
NLew, public comment dated 3/Aug/2020 Page 4 of 5

continued recreational use of the Odd Fellows Tract. The runway was not built due to negative impacts to William
B. Umstead State Park. The 2014 ULI Report continued to recommend recreational uses. Why and how did the
proposal for a private quarry on the Odd Fellows tract suddenly appear in June 2016 in direct conflict of previous
commitments and recommendations?
Given Odd Fellows is adjacent to Umstead State Park and given its history, the community enjoys this land in its
natural state, and in its natural state, this land benefits the community by providing quality of life for residents and
by providing a tourism draw. This land is part of the highly used Old Reedy Creek Recreation corridor which is an
artery connecting Cary's Black Creek Greenway, Cary's Old Reedy Creek Trailhead parking lot, and Lake Crabtree
County Park to Umstead State Park. This artery is part of the East Coast Greenway and the US1 Bike Route. This
land is part of the vital wildlife corridor connecting Jordan Lake to William B. Umstead State Park. This area also has
private homes, one of which would be within 200' of the proposed pit.
The 2014 Urban Land Institute (ULI) Advisory Services Panel Report and related slide presentation, which were
Commissioned and paid for by RDUAA, indicate that most of the Old Reedy Creek Road recreation corridor land that
is managed by RDUAA should be considered for the type of outdoor recreational activities that require a minimum
of facilities or development and that have minimal environmental impact (e.g. passive recreation). The report states
"Environmental stewardship is critical to ensure the long-term vitality of the local environment and for the selection
of appropriate land uses that the community can enioy."
These documents can be found at:
http://uli.org/wp-content/uploads/ULI-Documents/Raleigh-Durham-Airport PanelReport lores FINAL.pdf
https://wwwcache.wral.com/asset/news/local/2014/03/21/13500429/RDU AS Panel FINAL.pdf
Please proceed with caution when considering RDUAA's misleading letter and please deny Wake Stone Corporation's
Triangle Quarry permit modification request as it just has way too many negative impacts.
Sincerely,
Natalie Lew
Raleigh, NC
NLew, public comment dated 3/Aug/2020 Page 5 of 5