| There are two letters to Milan Township residents. The letters contain information about well testing being done in response to Holcim's request to expand their quarry operations. A Ground Water Protection Program was negotiated with Milan Township. One letter is for residents within a 1 mile radius of the Holcim property. This letter explains that testing is free for all homes within this 1 mile radius. The second letter is for all Milan Township residents outside of the 1 mile radius and the cost of the testing is listed. How to contact ASTI the engineering firm being used by Holcim that will do the testing is in each letter. There is also a letter with questions and answers. If you have any further questions please call your Milan Township official or the ASTI personnel listed in the letter. |
| Letter about free testing of your well 1 mile radius |
Dear Resident:
In May of 2006, Representatives of Holcim (US) Inc. and Milan Township concluded a year of negotiations and mutually agreed on a list of conditions that Holcim must fulfill before proceeding with their proposed quarry expansion. One of the terms of this agreement was the implementation of the Groundwater Protection Program, which provides additional security for residents of Milan Township above and beyond the existing State programs in place to protect groundwater resources for well owners.
As a part of the Groundwater Protection Program, Holcim agreed to install and make measurements at several monitoring wells throughout the Township, to sample and analyze residential well water, and to provide this data to the Township on a regular basis. This letter provides a description of the residential well sampling program and what it means to you.
As detailed in the Groundwater Protection Program, Holcim shall measure, if permitted by the homeowner, the productivity of an external, untreated faucet for a period of thirty minutes. The pH and specific conductivity will be measured on site. Additionally, a sample will be drawn from this external faucet and sent to a certified laboratory to be tested for:
total and dissolved iron
total and dissolved manganese
chloride
zinc
sulfide
sulfate
These tests are provided free of charge to you, as a resident living within one mile of Holcim’s property line. The results of this testing will be provided to the Township and made publicly available. These results will serve to provide Holcim, the Township, and you with a baseline assessment of their well productivity and water quality. Should a resident decline to have their well tested, the scope of the protection under the agreement will be limited to an analysis of the data provided by the monitoring well network.
The results of all testing will be provided to the Township and made publicly available. These tests will serve to provide Holcim, the Township, and you with a baseline assessment of their well productivity and water quality. However, all residents are protected under the Groundwater Protection Program, whether or not they request this baseline testing. Should a resident decline to have their well tested, the scope of the protection under the agreement will be limited to an analysis of the data provided by the monitoring well network.
Per the agreement, if there should be any future complaints from homeowners regarding the quality or quantity of groundwater at a well, Holcim and the Township will reference the baseline assessment (as detailed above) as well as the regular measurements of the installed monitoring wells to determine whether or not the symptoms at the residence can be attributed to the operations at Holcim. If any problems are found to be due to Holcim’s operations, Holcim will remedy the situation to the satisfaction of the Monroe County Health Department residential well standards.
It is important to have your well baseline testing done before the expansion of the quarry begins.
ASTI Environmental Inc., a contracted third party environmental consulting firm, will be organizing and carrying out the residential sampling program. To participate in this program, please call Jessica King of ASTI Environmental toll-free at (800) 395-ASTI (2784) ext. 212. Additionally, you can request testing in writing by sending a letter to ASTI Environmental Inc., Attn: Holcim GPP Water testing, at 10448 Citation Drive, Suite 100, Brighton, MI 48116-2160 with a copy sent to Milan Township at 16444 Cone Rd, Milan MI 48160.
If you have any questions before or after that time, please feel free to call Jessica King of ASTI Environmental at (800) 395-ASTI (2784) ext. 212 or your Milan Township officials at 734-439-1707.
| Letter to residents outside the 1 mile radius |
Dear Resident:
In May of 2006, Representatives of Holcim (US) Inc. and Milan Township concluded a year of negotiations and mutually agreed on a list of conditions that Holcim must fulfill before proceeding with their proposed quarry expansion. One of the terms of this agreement was the implementation of the Groundwater Protection Program, which provides additional security for residents of Milan Township above and beyond the existing State programs in place to protect groundwater resources for well owners.
As a part of the Groundwater Protection Program, Holcim agreed to install and make measurements at several monitoring wells throughout the Township, to sample and analyze residential well water, and to provide this data to the Township on a regular basis. This letter provides a description of the residential well sampling program and what it means to you.
Holcim shall measure, if permitted by the homeowner, the productivity of an external, untreated faucet for a period of thirty minutes. The pH and specific conductivity will be measured on site. The cost of this basic baseline testing is $100.
Additionally, at your request, a sample can be drawn from this external faucet and sent to a certified laboratory to be tested for total and dissolved iron, total and dissolved manganese, chloride, zinc, sulfate, and sulfide. The cost of this additional chemical testing is an extra $150. The total for both tests combined would be $250.
The results of all testing will be provided to the Township and made publicly available. These tests will serve to provide Holcim, the Township, and you with a baseline assessment of their well productivity and water quality. However, all residents are protected under the Groundwater Protection Program, whether or not they request this baseline testing. Should a resident decline to have their well tested, the scope of the protection under the agreement will be limited to an analysis of the data provided by the monitoring well network.
Per the agreement, if there should be any future complaints from homeowners regarding the quality or quantity of groundwater at a well, Holcim and the Township will reference the baseline assessment (as detailed above) as well as the regular measurements of the installed monitoring wells to determine whether or not the symptoms at the residence can be attributed to the operations at Holcim. If any problems are found to be due to Holcim’s operations, Holcim will remedy the situation to the satisfaction of the Monroe County Health Department residential well standards.
It is important to have your well baseline testing done before the expansion of the quarry begins.
ASTI Environmental Inc., a contracted third party environmental consulting firm, will be organizing and carrying out the residential sampling program. To participate in this program, please call Jessica King of ASTI Environmental toll-free at (800) 395-ASTI (2784) ext. 212. Additionally, you can request testing in writing by sending a letter to ASTI Environmental Inc., Attn: Holcim GPP Water testing, at 10448 Citation Drive, Suite 100, Brighton, MI 48116-2160 with a copy sent to Milan Township at 16444 Cone Rd, Milan MI 48160.
If you have any questions before or after that time, please feel free to call Jessica King of ASTI Environmental at (800) 395-ASTI (2784) ext. 212 or your Milan Township officials at 734-439-1707.
| Overview Questions and Answers |
This second letter has been sent to clarify this project and associated procedures that were unclear in the first letter mailed. This also allows us to answer some of the questions received thus far about the project. If you have any questions, or to schedule the sampling, please contact either Jessica King of ASTI at 1-800-395-ASTI (2784) or your Township office.
Frequently asked questions:
Q. I got a letter that says I have to pay for the sampling, but my neighbor got one that said it’s free. Why do I have to pay?
A. Holcim agreed to pay for the services offered to everyone living within one mile of the proposed expansion of the quarry. Anyone outside of this one-mile radius was offered the same service at a cost agreed upon by the Township Board.
Q. My water is fine. Why do I have to pay to have my well tested for this program?
A. You don’t. This program was designed by Holcim, London and Milan Township Boards and Planning Commissions, and their consultants in order to offer security to the Township’s residents, and is completely voluntary. Holcim has already identified itself as a High Capacity Well, and there is a state program already in place to protect residential well owners in the event of a problem. This program was meant to be a quicker and easier way for the Townships, residents, and Holcim to address any possible problems.
Q. Does this mean Holcim is going to start drawing down the aquifer?
A. No. All the research and calculations performed to date have shown that the effects of expanding the quarrying operations will be both very small and limited in range. This program was developed by Holcim and London and Milan Townships as a security measure for the Townships and a show of good faith and willingness to work with the community by Holcim.
Q. Can I choose which work I have done on my well water?
A. Yes and no. The residential well sampling cost for residents more than one mile from the proposed quarry was broken into components at the request of Township officials. You can choose to A) not participate, B) have the simple productivity of your well measured ($100), or C) have both the well productivity and water quality analysis performed ($250).
Q. If I don’t participate and I have a problem later, will Holcim still fix it?
A. Holcim has installed eight monitoring wells throughout the area which a third party group will monitor on a regular basis. If, during the course of future operations at the quarry, a resident has a problem with their water, Holcim will check the recent data from the monitoring wells, as well as any nearby complaints, in order to determine whether the information available points to a problem. If Holcim identifies, through data available, that its operations are affecting a residential water supply, they will takes steps to correct the problem whether or not that person paid for a baseline assessment. This residential sampling program simply provides a set of baseline data that can be referenced to protect both the resident and Holcim in the event of any future problems. It also provides security to Holcim, in that they can identify whether or not a residential water supply was problematic before operations started.
It is also important to know that this agreement between Holcim and both London and Milan Townships is made to be revisited and amended by London and Milan Townships as necessary to continue to protect residents.
