September 2001
People
BCS Tackles Community Relations Challenge Head On. Producer turns community complaints into support.
Cat Awards Grant to Nature Conservancy.
Memorial Scholarship Fund Established.
BCS Tackles Community Relations Challenge Head On
Buffalo, N.Y.—During the last several months, Buffalo
Crushed Stone has faced strong opposition from community groups at its
Cheektowaga quarry in Como Park. During a recent protest, one group leader
told local newspaper reporters that they believe that high rates of asthma
in children and other respiratory ailments in the area are caused by quarry
dust. They also claimed that the quarry, in conjunction with several area
landfills, formed a toxic triangle of health problems for the community.
Despite the rhetoric, the most recent news coverage of the situation showed
that area residents are fed up with the fuss and want the citizens groups
to drop the protests. How did the company defuse a potentially volatile
situation? Through solid communication, factual support from local agencies
and a willingness to listen to reasonable requests from community group
leaders.
According to news reports, two citizens groups, the Depew/Cheektowaga
Taxpayers Association and the Cheektowaga Citizens Coalition, a smaller,
more militant style group, have been behind the protests.
“The people are certainly entitled to their right to protest, but
I do think there’s a more constructive method,” Jamie Hypnarowski,
the senior vice president, told the newspaper.
He pointed to the larger citizens group saying that it was willing to
work with the company and local government officials to improve the situation.
“They want to be reasonable and work with us, and we want to take
that same approach,” he added.
Like many producers, BCS faces complaints about its blasting. According
to the news reports, those complaints were addressed in a May 9 letter
from the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). In the
letter, a DEC official said that BCS’ new blasting program had resulted
in “significant improvement” in reducing ground vibrations and
that “air blast decibel levels are substantially lower than last
year.”
Also, as mentioned earlier, at least one community action group accused
the quarry, along with nearby landfills, of comprising a “toxic triangle”
that leads to everything from auto-immune diseases and cancer to respiratory
ailments.
A report released in July by the state DEC, however, showed that there
were no significant problems caused by the quarry or the landfills.
And, like many other producers, BCS faced complaints about truck traffic.
In response, the company is considering requests to move one of its entrances
out of a residential neighborhood. “It’s something we’re
looking at now and will continue to look at in terms of the feasibility,”
said Hypnarowski in an article in the Buffalo News.
For several months, BCS has been in discussions with state officials about
possible access to the quarry from a new location. The biggest obstacles
include logistics and costs, but there are potential advantages for the
company as well.
Despite the glare of the spotlight focused on BCS, it is the citizens
groups that are now meeting with criticism from area residents. Recent
coverage indicates that the community is growing weary of the strident
tone of the protests.
“It’s far from a ‘toxic triangle.’ We don’t glow
in the dark,” Michael Kryszak, a lifelong resident told the Buffalo
News. For him, the DEC report proves that there is nothing wrong in the
neighborhood.
Carlos Fonts, vice president-development of TXI became a
member of the Council on Foreign relations, a non-partisan membership
organization and research center dedicated to increasing America’s
understanding of other nations and contributing ideas to those who determine
U.S. foreign policy.
Neal Merrifield was named the new director of the Office of Mines and
Minerals at the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
Delbert Tanner was appointed executive vice president at RMC Industries
Corp. He joined the company in 1998 as director of its western region.
Amy Kolbe, of Charlotte, Md., received a college scholarship from Chaney
Enterprises. The annual scholarship was created for students in Charles
County, Md., who are furthering their education in the areas of building
trades and/or drafting design.
J. Dix Druce was elected to Florida Rock Industries, Inc.’s board
of directors.
Cat Awards Grant to Nature Conservancy
Chicago—Caterpillar Inc. recently awarded a $625,000
grant to the Illinois Chapter of The Nature Conservancy. The grant, given
over the next five years, is the company’s largest single investment
to a conservation organization to date.
“Few, if any, organizations have as big of an impact on our environment
as The Nature Conservancy, and we could not be happier to support their
work,” said Bud Davis, general manager of Caterpillar’s component
manufacturing/marketing services group and vice chairman of the Conservancy’s
Illinois Chapter Board of Trustees. “This investment is just part
of our ongoing commitment to build and sustain our environment for future
generations, and The Nature Conservancy is in an excellent position to
help us achieve that goal.”
The Conservancy will use the gift to fund its work along the Illinois
River.
“Caterpillar’s continued support and leadership in the conservation
of the Illinois River is critical to our success,” said Michael Reuter,
chief conservancy officer and associate state director of the Illinois
Chapter of the Conservancy.
Memorial Scholarship Fund Established
Marco Island, Fla.—The formation of the Jennifer Curtis
Byler Scholarship Fund was announced at the National Stone, Sand &
Gravel Association’s Board of Directors Meeting.
The fund was created to recognize the life of a producer’s family
member who had an intense interest in the political process. Byler was
a national Republican committee woman for Virginia and a fundraiser for
both candidates and issue campaigns.
Income from the fund will be used to provide an annual scholarship to
a child of an aggregates industry employee who wishes to purse collegiate
studies in the area of public affairs.
The fund will be created within the Aggregates Foundation for Technology,
Research and Education. Tax-deductible contributions can be made to:
The Jennifer
Curtis Byler Scholarship Fund
C/O NSSGA
2101Wilson Blvd., Suite 100
Arlington, VA 22201