AUGUSTA, Maine — With language in a proposed bill to change the state’s mining laws solidified, legislators have scheduled a public comment session Friday to allow people to ask questions and suggest possible revisions.
Members of the Legislature’s Environment and Natural Resources Committee spent most of last week and two hours Monday scrutinizing LD 1853, An Act To Improve Environmental Oversight and Streamline Permitting for Mining in Maine.
Most of Monday’s work centered on revising language in the bill to make it more legally sound. Citizens can see and speak about the changes during the public comment session beginning 1 p.m. Friday in Room 216 of the Cross State Office Building.
Rep. John Martin, D-Eagle Lake, submitted the bill two weeks ago. He said he was prompted to introduce it because of the increasing price of minerals and the potential for mining gold, silver, copper and zinc on Bald Mountain in Aroostook County.
Bald Mountain is located northwest of Ashland and Portage. J.D. Irving owns the land with Prentiss & Carlisle.
Martin said the bill would create sensible, environmentally sound mining regulations that would encourage responsible mining activities and put the state Department of Environmental Protection in charge of permitting and regulating such operations.
According to Martin, recent reports indicate that mining development at Bald Mountain could create up to 300 direct, well-paying jobs and hundreds of indirect jobs. There also would be an excise tax on the minerals there, so the result would be more than $600 million in employment income and more than $120 million in state and local taxes, he said.
During Monday’s meeting Martin addressed the committee to dispel rumors that he has a conflict of interest because he is negotiating a $250,000 bankruptcy debt with an Irving family oil business. Martin is co-owner of Bald Eagle convenience store in his hometown of Eagle Lake, which Irving Oil Marketing says in bankruptcy filings is $250,000 in debt for gas and diesel deliveries and related charges. Mary Keith, a spokesman for J.D. Irving, said Bald Mountain is co-owned by “Irving Woodlands LLC and Aroostook Timberlands LLC” which “are separately owned and controlled by J.D. Irving Ltd. and none of these companies has any legal relationship or affiliation to Irving Oil.”
Martin reiterated that stance and also pushed back against e nvironmental and conservation groups who have said that lakes, streams and groundwater could be poisoned near Bald Mountain if there is not adequate public scrutiny or debate.
Martin told the committee he owns Moose Point Camps, a series of sporting camps which he said are 5½ miles from Bald Mountain. He said that he would never want to do any harm to the environment, especially in an area where he fishes and where environmental problems could hurt his sporting camp business.
Rep. Bernard Ayotte, R-Caswell said that from what he has gathered, people in The County are for the Bald Mountain project and people in southern Maine are against it.
“People in northern Maine are in favor of jobs,” he said.
The committee members talked briefly about why the bill was submitted so late in the session, and Martin said he did it because he knew the committee had time to tackle the legislation.
Martin pointed out that the population of Aroostook County was once 102,000 and is now down to 70,000.
“It is unfortunate that we are educating our young people and there are not enough jobs,” he said. “We are educating them and they are going to Portland.”
“When I look at the potential for 300 jobs, I can’t turn my back on it,” he continued.
If the measure passes, Irving officials said the required rulemaking by the DEP likely would not begin until at least January 2014.
Time to start UPCHUCKING!The only thing that prompted John Martin was that it was time to pay up the 250,000 dollar’s he owes to Irving. They might not have a legal relationship but they sure do have a personal one for sure. All of the Irving companies are enter twined in some way. John Martin as well as J.D. Irving don’t give a flying fig about anything or anybody but them. One can clearly see that obviously it was time that John had to repay what he owed. He never cared all these year’s that the people in aroostook county needed those jobs long before now and where was he then! Never heard a peep from that man.
I also don’t see how this is emergency legislation.
If ever there was a bill that needed to be tabled it is this one. This isn’t emergency legislation. I love it when a politician tries to make a bill sound like it will create jobs. They always use the term “up to”.
This is special interest legislation. Special interest legislation is wrong no matter if it is being done by a Democrat, Republican, Independent or Green.
Again we walk the same road 4mermainer.
LD1853 is yet another corporate takeover of our legislative process and our legislative priorities. Maine is already a “corporatocracy” a “kleptocracy”.That complete take over of our government to further corporate profits began long before Mr. Le Page, to our national shame, became our Governor.
In this, the sad tragically flawed embarrassing John Martin is more likely a victim rather
than an architect . A dupe and puppet.
That this piece of complete corporate manipulation of our legislative process has gotten this far is a violation of the public trust by the current players.by Martin and the 5 co-sponsors who sold out for what..past political debts? By every single member of the Natural Resources Committee who has not spoken out and tried to pubicly name this for what it is,who has played along and allowed this to come this far. They have all violated the public trust . All are equally accoyntable in trying to pass this outrage off as good for Maine. In my opinion it
approaches malfeasance.
This bill has been advanced behind closed doors in a last minute process to which mining lobbyists, JDIrving and their attorneys have had more input than the public. It is a product of these corporate interests and created expressly and for no other purpose than to further their profits no matter what the costs and consequences to Maine.
The falsehoods on which this is being offered to the people of Maine have been hand carried, but I doubt, created by the tragic, deeply troubled Mr. Martin.
(1) that changes in metal mining since 1991 make it now safer and more eco-friendly (2) that LURC’s existing rules onmining have somehow thwarted otherwise viable metal mining operations, and (3)that this represents an important “immediate” source of 300 jobs for Mainers at Bald Mountain alone..
The truth is inconvenient to JDIrving, John Martin and the sell out co-sponsors of this outrageous trojan horse.
The truth as J.D. Irving, JohnMartin, the sell out co-sponsors of this bill and every single member of the Natural Resources Committee know, or could easily have discovered in a few minutes on the web is that:
(1)The only advances in metal mining since 1991 that are relevant are about improvements in technology that make it easier to target mining operations and therefore more efficient significantly improving recovery. rates. It is one of the top 5 toxin generators according to US EPA and there have been no changes in the fundamental processes for retrieving metals and
therefore no changes in toxicity profile. (2) LURC’s rules on mining have not blocked any opportunity at all..J.D. Irving and other owners have made no inquiries at all about metal mining on their properties in the unorganized territory to take advantage of LURC’s existing Development District approach which allows metal mining already but with proper ”best practice” controls that LD1853 totally abandons. .(3) as JD Irving knows modern metal mining is a highly specialized endeavor. The jobs are filled by workers from outside who
specialize in mining and who have the highly specialized training needed. The
jobs, if any, for Mainers will be the dirtiest, the most dangerous, the lowest
paying
This doesn’t pass the smell test. Let’s table this one.
The County is not for this bill. The lies just keep on coming with the truth completely ignored. Only one person and one company will benefit from this bill.
Give me a break, John. This is a desperate move to save your sorry little service station. Leave that mountain alone and figure out another way to pay your debt to Irving.
If they do not expect DEP to begin rule making until January of 2014 why the big rush to pass this bill right now ? Why not take it up in the full session of the legislature ? Wow the public gets to comment at 1 p.m. on Friday. How many of the legislators will still be in town at that time of day ? Looks like an attempt to limit public input.
Do I like the idea of mining Bald Mountain ? No but that is base on nostalga. Mining there if done right is simply progress and would mean jobs for the County which they surely need. If it such a good idea now it will be a good idea 6 months from now when the public could truely be involved.
Let’s table this until the fall session. This is true case where haste could make waste.
Well said! There was alway’s a mystery of some sorts surrounding bald mountain and it should be left alone! How convenient to hold public opinion meeting during the afternoon on a week day when everybody that has a job is working. And another surprise no DEP around to be a part of this until 2014. Somebody must be squeezing Martin’s nads pretty hard for that 250,000 debt to be paid. John Martin never before was interested in abo creating those jobs before now. As a matter of fact anytime before now when numerous other companies and people wanting more jobs to mine at bald mountain they were told guess what………………………….. NO! Why John Martin keeps getting elected into office baffles my mind! Hopefully when this jerk comes up for re election again which can’t be soon enough I am in hopes he does not win.
Great location! Ought to be able to wipe out fishing in the west branch of the Fish River chain as well as the Aroostook River from Ashland down.
So when the “trace amounts” run out or the economy makes mining “trace amounts” unprofitable, our children will always have a memorial to this project!
I find it very interesting that the Legislature is RESTRICITING the comment session to only Augusta and not anywhere else. Given that the Project and the law are going to be impacting The County so much you would think (and one wonder’s why thinking is being so clearly ignored) that there would be a comment session up here. That there isin’t tells me that this is more than the prefunctory comment session that’s required by State law. It’s, in reality, nothing more than a ‘Charmin moment’ for Irving and Martin so they can have, for whatever record they are later on going to quote, a formal ‘Comment and Advise’ meeting on the record when their gold mining runoff starts polluting the watertables, all of them downstream from Bald Mountain. Countyopinion and 4mermainer are more than correct. They are both 100% dead-on target as far as calling this so-called ’emergency legislation’ for what is it. This needs to be discussed, debated, negotitated in the full House and Senate, not snuck thru like someone trying to steal a ‘quickie’ from the proverbial farmer’s daughter.
It also calls for the AG’s office to start looking into the permitting process for conflict of interest provision’s. Martin himself has publicly stated that he’s ‘in the hole’ to Irving for over $ 150 K. And suddenly he proposes a piece of legislation that provides Irving a way to make money, without competition, that will far exceed what he owes Irving. Please, some one gag me with a snowshovel if this doesn’t pass the ‘stinky finger’ test on the 1st try ! The resident’s of Eagle Lake should not just be embarassed but outraged by their elected representative clearly selling his office for private gain. And the Maine DNC needs to start cleaning house as well. If there was ever an opportunity for the DNC to start showing where, and how, it is going to enforce political ethics and standards of conduct for Democrat’s (and the ghost of John Edwards is still out there haunting everyone), this case screams for an investigation. Better the DNC does it now before this whole mess implodes and it winds up on the U.S. Attorney’s desk for a Federal Grand Jury to start looking into. That does no one any good.
The numbers do not add up. $600 million in employment income and 300 jobs. That is an average of $2 million per job – over the life of the project. How long will this be? Say 10 years. That means the average job will pay $200,000 (assume that the full burden with benefits, taxes, etc = 33% which translates to a $150,000 yearly salary). This is an unrealistic figure and does not pass the straight face test.
That means for every average joe who will likely make $25 per hour (costing the company $33/hr with benefits, taxes, etc), there will be someone else making $120 per hour(costing the company $160/hr with benefits, taxes, etc) to meet the average of $200,000 per year.
This is not to say there wont be very high paying jobs in this type of operation – there will be a small handful. But the rank and file workers will greatly outnumber those who will rake in the cash.
Even if the project lasts 20 years (cutting all figures in half), the same thinking applies. The project will be handled mostly by regular joes making 15, maybe 20, bucks an hour.
And who will these regular joes be? Local joes or joes from away? joes who have the mining experience from other parts of the country? maybe canadian joes? It is not clear who will actually work this project. It only says that Irving and Prentiss Carliss own the land.
The long and short of it is that it is not a Maine based company stepping up. That being the case, the all important profit dollars will will flow out of the State (maybe the country). Sure there may be a few years of decent paying jobs for the locals – which is an OK thing. But do not get buffaloed into thinking this will solve all the regions employment woes. Once the dust settles, this will amount to some jobs to the legions of forest product based workers who have been cut out over the years. So maybe the employment landscape looks like it did 10 years ago – some decent paying jobs for the locals, but most of the work will be performed by those from away. And like 10, 20, and now 30 years ago, the profits will quietly slip into someone elses hands who has no real interest or ties to the region.
Here is an interesting suggestion…………… Maybe John Martin should sell his precious Moose Point camps and pay his 250,000 debt with that!
Moose Point Camps hasn’t been profitable for John and his two co-owners. That is probably why John hasn’t been paying Irving and he’s taking that money and paying Moose Point Camp bills….John can’t let the Camps fail, because he doesn’t have the controlling interest in them…
John can’t out right sell Moose Point camps as he is a co-owner….not the owner of Moose Point Camps as he states. Pat has the most money into the camps with John second and Clayton the third partner….Three co-owners not John Martin who tells everyone that he owns the camps…John start telling the County and down state that you don’t own the camps out right. You have two partners who have a say. You can sell your share and pay your bill.
What’s the hurry John….the County doesn’t want the Fish Lake area trashed….that’s why they chased them out years back when they started soil testing and drilling. Bald Mountain used to be a beautiful area….now it is a waste land of over cutting, and soil erosion big time. The Fish River Chain has never been the same since the late 1980’s and will be a nightmare if John Martin has his way….
John doesn’t want anyone from the County to speak at the hearings….because he knows the biggest percentage of people in the County don’t want it….that’s why all the close door hearings. That’s the way John Matin does things….behind your back. This whole thing stinks big time……He tried to do the same thing up in Allagash and they threw him out by the Friends of the Allagash Group….