Note: The following is not a verbatim transcript of the Zoning Hearing Board meeting; it is simply one person’s summary of the major points made by those involved in the hearing process.  For that reason, quotation marks are not used unless a direct quote was recorded.  For information about obtaining an official ZHB transcript, contact the New Hanover Township office.

Stephen Harris, attorney for Gibraltar Rock presented hydrologic data through testimony of  Walter B. Satterthwaite, principal of  Walter B. Satterthwaite Assocs., Inc. 

Harris introduced Exhibit 28---a “72 Hour Aquifer Pump Test”.  This test was conducted during July 2001. Basically, it consists of digging an 8” hole to 400 feet (the depth of the proposed quarry) and then monitoring over 20 wells that were dug on the 163 acres (these include certain wells belonging to local residents on Church Road).  The purpose of this test is to simulate the stress placed on wells when a large amount of water is released (through the 8” hole to 400+ feet deep), as it would with the digging of a quarry.

Satterthwaite reviewed (in detail) the amounts of water (gallons/hour) that were monitored at the wells.  From his data, he was able to plot a graph that proposed to indicate the area of most and least stress on the aquifer.

Satterthwaite talked about his observation that the water entry points (into the core hole) were relatively high up in the hole and that as one digs deeper that there is no water. This is good for a quarry since the most water will be found in the beginning as the quarry is dug.  Later in the life of the quarry (as it gets deeper) less water will flood into the hole and have to be “managed” or lost.

Satterthwaite opined that 72 hours is enough to stress the wells in the surrounding area.

Satterthwaite explained that he used eight (8) automatic recording devices to determine the amount of water flowing from the holes. He used human observation in the first two hours and used the eight automatic monitoring devices for the remainder (70 hours).

Satterthwaite next explained to the Zoning Hearing Board the terms “transmissivity” and “storability”.  Transmissivity is the ability of rock to pass water through it and Storability is the rock’s ability to store water. Both of these “values” were determined for the rock underlying the proposed quarry.  Satterthwaite commented that it his observations indicate that the rock underlying the proposed quarry is low in both of these values, which is ideal for a quarry.

Harris next asked Satterthwaite what he could tell about the aquifer from his studies.  Satterthwaite said that the better rock is found in the center of the site. He also said that wells did not lose water off the site (that no resident’s wells on Church Road were affected). 

Satterthwaite then mentioned that the best quarry rock was found NE of the main site (above Hoffmansville Road). This is best because the rock is so dense and there are minimal entry points in the ground for water. He stated that there is no aquifer at the upper end to affect local home wells.  He also mentioned that because the rainfall this past summer was so low that it was a perfect time to do this study. It just proves (in his estimation) that even if there is a drought, local residents will not lose water because of the quarry.

Harris next asked Satterthwaite to project the areas of good rock and good water characteristics onto the township’s map of the HI (High Industrial) and LI (Low Industrial) areas in question.  Satterthwaite said that the township’s areas are “artificially zoned areas that don’t conform” to the way the rock really is under the surface.  But, Satterthwaite said, if the township permitted quarrying in the LI zone it would conform to his rock and water studies.

Bob Brant, attorney for New Hanover Township began a cross-examination of Satterthwaite.

Mr. Brant began questioning Satterthwaite on the Phase I and II Environmental Site Assessment that his company conducted.  A Phase I and II Environmental Site Assessment typically includes the findings of a site inspection and an environmental records review.  

Brant began by asking Satterthwaite if his company has a written document that explains how to conduct a Phase I and II Environmental Site Assessment.  Satterthwaite said his company did not have such a document. 

Brant spent some time questioning Satterthwaite on his company’s lack of recorded methods and processes.  (Note: many engineering organizations and companies rely on documents that define and formalize their internal and external processes. This is to assure that each project they work on is done in a similar, repeatable manner.) Satterthwaite contended that his company has three principals (partners or owners) who are experts and therefore have no need for documented processes.  In effect, he is implying that they know how to do their job and don’t need any formalized method to assure accuracy and consistency.

Brant asked him if he was familiar with the ASTM (American Society of Testing and Materials) standards that provide guidelines for conducting a Phase I and II Environmental Site Assessment. He said he did.   

Brant asked Satterthwaite if he interviewed former owners of the land. Satterthwaite said he did.  Brant asked him if he interviewed Mr. James Marinari, the person who owned the land prior to Gibraltar Rock. Satterthwaite said he did.  Brant asked Satterthwaite to read a portion of the report submitted by Satterthwaite’s firm.  The paragraph that Satterthwaite read indicated that he DID NOT interview Marinari.  Brant asked Satterthwaite if he was trying to hide anything from the zoning hearing board. Satterthwaite replied “No”. Brant then asked if he was trying to hide anything from the local residents and he again replied that he was not.

Brant then asked Satterthwaite why he therefore knowing entered false information into a document that he knew was going to be presented to the zoning hearing board. He received no conclusive answer.

Brant then asked Satterthwaite whether he found TCE (trichloroethylene). For more information on TCE refer to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.   On that site you will find this statement “Trichloroethylene is a colorless liquid which is used as a solvent for cleaning metal parts. Drinking or breathing high levels of trichloroethylene may cause nervous system effects, liver and lung damage, abnormal heartbeat, coma, and possibly death. Trichloroethylene has been found in at least 852 of the 1,430 National Priorities List sites identified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).”

Satterthwaite spent the next five minutes trying to locate any indication of TCE in his study.  

At this point Mr. Skypala, the zoning hearing board’s attorney called for the meeting to end.

See also:
Summary of the previous meeting (10/24/01)