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November 14, 2018
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| By
Michael Miller |
01/26/2018 2:27PM |
Water is a California issue both in amount, distribution and condition. For too many years our Sixteen to One has been harassed by a public entity known as California Regional Water Quality Control Board - Central Valley Region. Read this Forum topic to gain a real view of how corrupt our public water agency has evolved from the legislative intent.
Not all the public employees are practicing corruption; however some are willingly doing so. Most Californians wants good water policies. The time and money spent to keep our water safe, clean and uphold the seasoned laws and customs of beneficial uses rights and responsibilities have vanished from the public consciousness. Our situation up in the Sierra Nevada needs your attention and support.
Following is a letter required to conduct a public hearing with the State Water Resources Control Board. As an individual I also filed a letter (a right for all Californians) seeking relief from the actions of the Central Valley staff and board members. California has become notorious as, well you slip in the next word after notorious. This behavior costs all of us when it has zero beneficial benefits. A goal is to replace ignorance with knowledge.
State Water Resources Control Board January 8, 2018
1001 I Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
Dear Members of the Board,
Original Sixteen to One Mine, Inc. (OPERATOR) incorporated in San Francisco, California on October 9, 1911, has continuously operated its gold properties in Sierra County, becoming the longest operating gold mine and oldest United States of America gold mining company. We are proud of our accomplishments and our State’s history of gold and its importance to our country. During California’s Sesquicentennial celebrations, we were the only gold mining Company to participate. In the 1990’s, our operation was the largest private employer in Sierra County. I became president of the “Sixteen to One”’ in 1983. I write today requesting a hearing according to “Instructions for Filing Water Quality Petitions” on your website.
Original Sixteen to One Mine, Inc.
PO Box 909
Alleghany, CA 95910
(530) 287-3223
mmeistermiller@gmail.com
OPERATOR request a hearing with you to present new evidence, seek answers to our questions of staff and challenge misinformation in a hearing held by the Central Valley Regional Water Control Board (CVRWQCB) on December 8, 2017. We are also confident that evidence presented by staff to the board members is inconsistent with California laws regarding relevant water issues. We received a copy of the result of the hearing by mail dated 14 December 2017, attached to this letter. We challenge this decision.
One main abuse in power is the understanding of beneficial rights. The Prosecution Team and the Advisory Team violated Sections 13000, 13001, 130029 (d), 13050(d),(f),(h) and (j)(1) and (l)(A) and (D)(q) (1) in their attempt to prosecute OPERATOR. The Prosecution Team and the Advisory Team violated Article 3. Regional water quality control plans: 13240, 13241 (a),(b),(c),(d), 13242(a), 132639(e), 13263.1, 13301.1, 13399 to fairly and accurately carryout California’s Legislators intent of established laws. The action taken in the December 8, 2017,public hearing was inappropriate, improper and illegal based on the specific site, Kanaka Creek watershed in Sierra County and an ancient tunnel that was driven into the north side of Kanaka Creek in 1865.
The regional staff has no Solution Team, which was raised by Original Sixteen to One president and its attorney during the hearing. The extremely high dollar penalty puts the ongoing operation in jeopardy, affecting the jobs and livelihood of local men, financial loss to over 1000 California shareholders and the most historic gold mining operation in our State. It puts in jeopardy tax revenue to Sierra County, California and the United States of America. It puts in jeopardy the availability of natural resources (gold, building stone), forest management and fire protections that benefit the public. The presentation was negatively slanted at the outset against OPERATOR. Its purposes appear to extracting money, possibility closing the operation and justify the very existence of the Prosecution Team.
CVRWQCB staff members refused to mitigate or engage in serious mitigation discussions initiated by OPERATOR to amend WDRs Order R5-2015-0002 (NDPES CA0081809) or introduce to the BOARD evidence that OPERATOR displayed good faith efforts towards eliminating or reducing century’s long natural water conditions relevant in the Kanaka Creek watershed.
The discussion by board members is worthwhile for you to gain an understanding of this board and its members. There is no doubt that all the members want to protect the water environment in California; however their ignorance was obvious from a science view, a beneficial view, a reasonable view and a common sense view. The staff failed to address these, which you can correct. These issues were raised at the December 8, 2017, hearing by attorney Klaus Kolb or president Michael M. Miller; however the Advisory Team more than once stifled Board discussions. Relevant questions, answers to questions and direct testimony from OPERATOR were denied. This was not the type of a public hearing that most California board members, public employees or elected official person would be proud to support. OPERATOR ordered the audio from the hearing and recommends you obtain a transcript for your individual review. A copy of this petition with attachments will be sent to CVRWQCB immediately after emailed to you.
Original Sixteen to One Mine, Inc. requests the State Water Board use all of its options to redress this regulatory abuse. An evidentiary hearing is requested. Petitioner includes this Summary of Arguments:
Violation of Porter- Cologne Water Quality Control Act
Violation of California Central Basin Plan
Violation of Waste Discharge Requirement (WDRs) Order R5-2015-0002 (NDPES CA0081809)
Reckless exclusion of Exculpatory Evidence in presentation to Board
Portrayed OPERATOR as scofflaw
Violated ARTICLE X SEC.2 of Constitution of the State of California…the general welfare requires that the water resources of the State be put to beneficial use to the fullest extent of which they are capable and that the waste or unreasonable use or unreasonable method of use of water be prevented, and that conversation of such waters is to be exercised with a view to the reasonable and beneficial use thereof in the interest of the people and for the public welfare.
Sincerely yours,
Michael Meister Miller
President
Original Sixteen to One Mine
Copied:
Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board
11020 Sun Center Drive, “200
Rancho Cordova, CA 95670-6114
(Note): Email sent to waterqualitypetitions@waterboards.ca.gov contains this letter plus two attachment also included in the US Postal envelope to above address.
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| By
Michael Miller |
10/18/2017 9:08AM |
John Stossal reports:
Anderson Cooper's show recently featured a "two-part exclusive" that claims Donald Trump's EPA director had conspired with the CEO of a mining company to "withdraw environmental restrictions" so the company could dig "the largest open pit mine in the world in an extremely sensitive watershed in wild Alaska."
The report was enough to horrify any caring person. CNN showed beautiful pictures of colorful salmon swimming in Bristol Bay, and the reporter intoned dramatically, "EPA staffers were shocked to receive this email obtained exclusively by CNN which says 'we have been directed by the administrator to withdraw restrictions' ... protection of that pristine area was being removed."
No! A "pristine" area and gorgeous salmon were about to be obliterated by a mine! I would have believed it, except I happened to report on that mine a couple of years ago.
I knew that the real scandal was not EPA director Scott Pruitt's decision to "withdraw the restrictions"; it was what President Obama's EPA did to the company's mining proposal in the first place.
Zealots at the EPA had conspired with rich environmental activists to kill the mine before its environmental impact statement could even be submitted. This was unprecedented.
The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform later concluded: "EPA employees had inappropriate contact with outside groups and failed to conduct an impartial, fact-based review."
Now, appropriately, Pruitt undid that censorship of science.
But CNN, implying devious secrecy said, "according to multiple sources, he made that decision without a briefing from any of EPA's scientists."
Shocking!
But Pruitt didn't require opinions from scientists. He didn't approve the mine. He didn't make a science decision. He simply followed the law and allowed a company to submit a proposal.
Also, despite CNN's repeated depictions of salmon on Bristol Bay, it turns out that the proposed mine would not even be on the Bay. It would not even be 10 miles away, or 20 miles away, or even 50 miles. The proposed mine would be about 100 miles away.
Did CNN mention that? No. Never. We asked CNN why. And why not point out that the mining company is just being allowed to start the EPA's long and arduous environmental review? They didn't get back to us.
Of course, explaining that wouldn't fit CNN's theme: Evil Trump appointee ravages environment.
Their reporter did at least speak with the mine's CEO, Tom Collier, who tried to explain.
"It's not a science -- it's a process decision."
But the reporter, Drew Griffin, wouldn't budge. He called Collier "a guy who wants to mine gold in an area that many scientists believe will destroy one of the most pristine sockeye salmon sporting grounds in the whole world."
By the way, Collier isn't an evil Republican-businessman-nature-destroyer. He's a Democrat who once ran environment policy for President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore. CNN never mentioned that either. Instead, the reporter implied evil collusion: "This looks like the head of a gold mine went to a new administrator and got him to reverse what an entire department had worked on for years."
Here at least the report was accurate. Obama's environmental department did try to kill that mine for years. They colluded with groups like the Natural Resources Defense Council, one of America's wealthiest environment groups.
The NRDC is mostly made up of anti-progress lawyers who want no mines built anywhere. Don't believe me? I asked NRDC spokesman Bob Deans:
STOSSEL: There are some mines where NRDC says, great, go ahead?
DEANS: It's not up to us.
STOSSEL: Are there any?
DEANS: It's not up to us to green light mines...
STOSSEL: Are there any you don't complain about?
DEANS: Yeah, sure.
So I asked him for some names. He and the NRDC still haven't provided any.
If these zealots and their sycophants in the media get their way, America will become a place with no mining, no pipelines, no oil drilling, no new ... anything.
The acronym used to make fun of anti-development attitudes used to be NIMBY -- Not In My Back Yard. Now it's BANANA: Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anybody. |
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| By
Michael Miller |
12/13/2016 6:02PM |
Dear Forum participants,
When you have some time, check this out. Pass it along to others as our operation moves forward towards increased gold production and excitement in 2017.
December 12, 2016
Hello Everyone,
Wanted to let you know that our radio tour into the 16 to One Gold Mine in Alleghany is now complete. Go to the following URL (Resources tab in the Operation Unite website and look under the Meet Your Mentor subsection:
http://www.operationunite.co/resources/
You will find the radio show and two video clips from our day's activities.
I had a wonderful time recording our experience in the mine and appreciate each and every one of you. Mike, thanks again for opening up the mine to Meet Your Mentor and the time that you shared with us. Ronit, hope we added even more excitement and focus to your geologic pursuits.
Happy Holidays everyone and have a wonderfully prosperous new year.
Respectfully,
Stephen J. Baker
Hydrogeologist, California/Washington PG, HG
December 13, 2016
Dear Steve,
Nice work. I clicked the web site and your video magically appeared. Others should find the two videos an interesting trip. I did.
Regards,
MMM |
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© 2018 Original Sixteen to One Mine, Inc.
PO Box 909
Alleghany, California 95910
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Design & development by
L. Kenez
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