Stop the Knife River Concrete Batch Plant!
Knife River wants to build a high-capacity concrete batch plant immediately adjacent to and upwind of our neighborhoods. This plant will produce up to 200 truck loads daily and run 24 hours-a-day. In addition to the 200 daily concrete trucks, there will be a constant stream of large-truck traffic delivering raw materials, along with the noise of the materials being dumped and moved into holding bays. Beeeeeep… beeeeep… beeeeeep around the clock.
Concrete batch plants like this are one of the leading sources of particulate matter pollution and produce large quantities of silicate dust, black carbon, nitrogen dioxide, and volatile organic compounds. All of these are
significant health risks to those regularly exposed. In Houston, Texas, particulate matter alone was linked to 5,200 premature deaths in 2015.
The plant being proposed just hundreds of feet from homes and families will feature a 9-story (~95 foot tall) central tower, fed by multiple open-air conveyor belts. In addition to the daily dose of silicate dust, expect dramatically increased noise,
intense construction-style lighting throughout the night, and, for many, low-frequency vibration whenever trucks are being loaded, often starting between 2:00 and 4:00 AM to meet typical construction schedules.
A few months ago, a spot zoning exemption changed a single parcel to Rail Industrial (IR) despite being previously rejected twice by the County! For decades, this area has had a Light Industrial (IL) zoning and we’ve happily
co-existed. These businesses bring jobs and growth to the county, without being a danger or a persistent nuisance to nearby residents. None of us moved here expecting to live next to an industrial plant, running around the clock and spewing waste
across our homes, yards, gardens, and families. Zoning is supposed to
protect us.
LET’S START GETTING ORGANIZED
Knife River intends to submit their formal application in February. While the approval and permitting process will take some time, we need to educate ourselves on the process, watch for announcements, request hearings and stop this potentially lethal
neighbor from being built! It is imperative that the voices of the thousands of people who will be negatively impacted by this plant are heard.
Please don’t sit this one out – there’s too much at stake!
Join us at the following events:
FOCV Community Meeting
Learn more about what we know so far, what’s coming up, and how you can get involved in protecting your home and health!
Cascades Presbyterian Church
9503 NE 86th Street
Vancouver, WA 98662
See this location on Google Maps
Clark County Council Public Meeting
We’re still gathering information and formulating strategies, but we do want the council to know we’re aware of and opposed to this development.
1300 Franklin St, Suite 680 (Sixth Floor)
Vancouver, WA 98666
