Bradford BOCC 2018-09-04

All the public speakers were against the phosphate mine. Before the Commissioners decided, Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson spoke about rain, the Chemours mine, and how what Bradford County does affects her business downstream. (I think Stasia Rudolph also spoke before I got there.) After some confusion on timing, afterwards Marc Lyons reminded them Citizens Against Phosphate Mines (CAPM) is ready to sue, and Kate Ellison said she hopes this means we will all see the consultant’s report before the public hearings. I sent a letter and a resolution the previous day and gave them paper copies.

The actual decision was much better than expected. While some Commissioners wanted to hold a public hearing on the phosphate mine proposal next month and be done with it, the actual decision was to hold a series of hearings in January, after the election and giving plenty of time for everyone to prepare. As Scott R. Koons of the North Central Florida Regional Planning Council reminded the Commissioners, these will be quasi-judicial hearings, with attorneys, expert witnesses, and evidence, and all the same Commissioners must sit in each hearing. If one Commissioner misses the first hearing, that Commissioner can’t sit in any of the other hearings. This is serious business.

Below are links to each of the WWALS videos, with a few notes, followed by a WWALS video playlist. See also the agenda.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

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