Dear Mat-Su Community Members,
We are writing today to thank you for taking the time to weigh in on Mayor DeVilbiss’s resolution (11-112) that was recently under consideration at the most recent Mat-Su Borough (MSB) Assembly Meeting on September 6th. As you will recall the resolution was submitted by the Mayor to offer support from the borough for Usiblelli Coal Mine Company’s DNR permit renewal for the proposed Wishbone Hill open pit coal strip mine near Sutton.
It is fair to say that the pro-coal crowd was out organized as we had over 100 supporters attend to voice their strong opposition to the resolution.
Unfortunately the Mayor realized this and decided to stifle the public process and steamrolled the public by limiting the amount of time for public testimony and not allowing all who were in attendance to testify.
As anticipated, the Assembly decided to vote for the resolution and passed it with a 5-1 vote. Special thanks to Assembly member Warren Keogh who stood up for the public by casting the sole dissenting vote. It was telling in the deliberations when Mr. Keogh asked the rest of the Assembly members “who actually had read the DNR permit application” that they were voting on and the answer was none.
Though this was a set back for those who are concerned about the impacts of the Wishbone project, we encourage you to stay engaged, as there will be many more future opportunities to affect the outcome. We will be contacting you soon to ask for your comments on Usibelli’s DEC air permit and their DNR mining permit renewal.
Please take a second to make your voice heard today!
The Frontiersman Newspaper now has a poll up on their website to gauge public opinion of the Wishbone project. Usibelli and their supporters have quickly organized to skew the results of the poll.
Please take 15 seconds to register your opposition to the Wishbone Hill Coal Mine by going to www.frontiersman.com and scrolling down to the poll on the left hand side of the page.
The results of this poll will likely shape future coverage of the issue so it is very important that everyone with an interest in stopping coal development in Mat-Su take a couple of seconds to vote – www.frontiersman.com and then tell all your friends, neighbors, cousins, family and pets to vote too.
Thank you for your support!
Friends of Mat-Su
[note - I am on the board of directors of the Friends of Mat-Su]
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