South Maury Island Environmental Issues - Possible Advantages and Disadvantages of The Glacier Northwest Gravel Pit

Possible Advantages and Disadvantages of The Glacier Northwest Gravel Pit

There are some possible advantages to the mining on South Maury Island, as well as disadvantages. According to Glacier Northwest, Maury island has one of the largest reserves of gravel rock, and, because it is an island, the gravel can be easily transported on barges to other areas of the Pacific Northwest. However, the barge traffic itself could increase pollution levels, and also increase the chances of possible collisions with endangered marine mammals who reside in or pass through the area. One of the arguments against the transportation of the rock is that the new dock that would be built for it has much potential for the destruction of vital habitat for sea life. The impact could be lessened if Glacier Northwest replaces or mitigates any damages caused by the dock. Another worry of the Preserve Our Lands and other groups is the possible arsenic contamination of the drinking water. This could be offset by large containers that could contain the waste from the mining. However, what would happen to the arsenic after has been contained has yet to be addressed in detail. Other benefits of the mining are the large number of jobs the mine could create, and the boost to the local economy that the mine might produce. However, the mine could also negatively affect tourism and property values in the area.

Read more about this topic:  South Maury Island Environmental Issues

Famous quotes containing the words advantages, glacier, northwest, gravel and/or pit:

    But there are advantages to being elected President. The day after I was elected, I had my high school grades classified Top Secret.
    Ronald Reagan (b. 1911)

    “The glacier knocks in the cupboard,
    The desert sighs in the bed,
    And the crack in the tea-cup opens
    A lane to the land of the dead.
    —W.H. (Wystan Hugh)

    I got my first clear view of Ktaadn, on this excursion, from a hill about two miles northwest of Bangor, whither I went for this purpose. After this I was ready to return to Massachusetts.
    Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)

    ‘Lay me a green sod under my head,
    And another at my feet;
    And lay my bent bow at my side,
    Which was my music sweet;
    And make my grave of gravel and green,
    Which is most right and meet.
    —Unknown. Robin Hood’s Death (l. 65–70)

    I respect the ways of old folks, but the blood of a rooster or a goat cannot turn the seasons, change the course of the clouds and fill them up with water like bladders. The other night, at the ceremony for Legba, I danced and sang my fill: I am a black man, no? and I enjoyed it like a true Negro should. When the drums beat, I feel it in the pit of my stomach, I feel the itch in my hips and up and down my legs, I have got to join the party. But that is all.
    Jacques Roumain (1907–1945)