Mayor expresses disappointment in judge’s ruling.



By Melanie Patterson

The North Jefferson News



After more than a year-long battle against mining in Kimberly, residents learned Thursday that a coal mine will in fact open in their community.

Jefferson County Circuit Court Judge J. Scott Vowell ruled late Wednesday in favor of RJR Mining Company Inc.

RJR had appealed a Feb. 25 decision of the Jefferson County Board of Zoning Adjustment to deny a variance on the property at 8800 Bill Jones Road, which would allow RJR to surface mine 133 acres for coal.

The property, 264.5 acres total, is zoned I-3 (industrial).

The coal seam reportedly contains 300,000 tons of coal that would sell for $60 per ton. That makes the estimated market value of Kimberly’s coal $18 million, according to Vowell’s written final judgment.

Kimberly Mayor Ralph Lindsey has fought the opening of the mine for more than a year.

In October 2007, the Kimberly Planning and Zoning Commission, of which Lindsey was then a member, voted against RJR mining the site.

He was disappointed Thursday about the judge’s decision.

“Once again the will of the people has been shunted aside and beaten back by power and money,” he said.

Vowell, in his final judgment, wrote that he would not have ruled in RJR’s favor if he could not have placed restrictions on the mining.

He in fact included 15 conditions to which RJR must adhere (see table below), with the court retaining jurisdiction to enforce the conditions.

Vowell acknowledged that the “testimony is in sharp dispute.” The 15 conditions were his response to citizens’ outcry that mining the area would create hazardous conditions in the community.

He also wrote that to “deny the owner with the use of the property is a ‘hardship.’”

Drummond Company Inc. owns the property and has “engaged RJR to mine the coal,” according to the judgment.

RJR attorney Wendell Allen with Bradley, Arant, Rose and White LLP, said he does not know when the mining will begin.

Opponents to mining in Kimberly have been vocal and active.

At a public hearing at Kimberly Town Hall in October 2007, hundreds of people showed up to protest the mining.

The result was that the Kimberly Town Council on Nov. 13, 2007, voted not to enter into a mining agreement with RJR, despite handsome financial incentives that RJR offered the town.

Then in January, the Kimberly council voted to de-annex the property, which put the land into unincorporated Jefferson County.

RJR’s next move was to request a zoning variance from the Jefferson County Board of Zoning Adjustment.

Kimberly residents continued to fight the matter all the way through the Oct. 14-15 bench trial by testifying in court, gathering evidence and donating money to help with court costs.

Attorney Scott Morro of Morris played a key role in the fight by organizing the testimony and leading the way in court during the bench trial.

Morro, disappointed by the decision, said the judgment was based on erroneous information that was put forth during the trial.

According to Lindsey, RJR and Drummond “out dollar-ed us,” so there will be no appeal.



Mining restrictions

Judge Scott Vowell placed the following conditions on the variance granted to RJR Mining Company Inc.:

• The variance to allow for surface mining is solely for the 133 acres contained in the parcel.

• RJR will engage in active mining, including the loading of coal, Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. to 4 p.m.

• RJR shall be entitled to perform maintenance and service on equipment on weekdays outside above hours and on Saturdays.

• RJR will not perform any work on the property on Sundays.

• RJR will ship up to 14 loads of coal daily and only on weekdays.

• Every load of coal will be tarped. Loads of coal will not be released between 7-8 a.m. or 3-4 p.m. when school buses are running.

• Applicable weight limits on the trucks will be strictly enforced by RJR.

• RJR will have no more than seven employees, in addition to supervisors and inspectors, working on the site at any one time.

• RJR will leave a standing timber buffer around the permitted area and shall build a privacy slatted fence at least 10 feet tall as a buffer on the portion of Anderson Road where timber has been cut.

• RJR will gate the access road and keep it locked when employees are not on the site.

• Any water on the property sufficient to cause danger to children or others, including retention ponds, will be fenced in such a manner as to prohibit trespassers from gaining access thereto.

• All coal trucks will enter and exit the mine onto Morris-Majestic Road and all shipments of coal shall occur using the route of Morris-Majestic to Alabama Hwy. 79.

• RJR shall not be entitled to use blasting or any type of explosives as part of its mining operations on the property.

• RJR, its employees and its transportation company will comply with all local, state and federal laws.

• At the conclusion of the work, the property will be restored and reclaimed as required by Alabama and United States law.