What's going on ? 

Archuleta County is partnering with the Pagosa District of San Juan National Forest to put a
gravel mine / pit and rock crushing operation on FSR 738, just off of FSR37 - Jackson Mountain
Road. The proposed site is less than 2000 ft from the nearest homes in San Juan River
Village and designed for placement in the middle of a newly planned mountain bike trail
system! The gravel pit would support both Archuleta County and USFS needs and be operated
from May through November. The NFS has estimated the number of large gravel trucks to be >
20 per day (one every 24 minutes, every single day, M-F) that will share this small forest road
with mountain recreation users. The mining operation may create a severe health, safety,
environmental, wildlife, and economic problems for not just the SJRV neighborhood, but, for all
who live near and travel on HWY160 north of Pagosa and enjoy Jackson Mountain for
recreation.

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What We Know

Archuleta County contracted with Wasteline Inc in 2021 to coordinate a joint partnership with
NFS through a “Free Use” permit from the Pagosa Ranger USFS office for the gravel extraction
at the FSR738 site. In the late summer months of 2022, the NFS added the proposed gravel pit
to the Jackson Mountain Landscape Project (primarily a plan for managed mountain bike trails
in the Jackson Mountain area up to that point). The USFS has held several informative
meetings with the San Juan River Village in the Fall of 2022 about both the mountain biking
trails, which we support, and the gravel pit, which being 2000 ft from the neighborhood, we
strongly oppose. The USFS has assured us that the decision (by USFS) on the Mountain Bike
Trail System and the Gravel Pit are mutually exclusive.

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Public Comment Period

As part of the NEPA process, the Pagosa District of the USFS officially announced on Jan 10,
2023 the beginning scoping period "public comment" that will begin on January 10, 2023 and
end on February 23, 2023. Scoping comments must be submitted by no later than February 23,
2023. In addition, an in-person comment opportunity is scheduled for February 2nd

, 5PM – 7PM at the Ross Aragon Community Center, 451 Hot Springs Blvd., Pagosa Springs.

We have voiced our objections to both the NFS and Archuleta County and have even provided
them with alternative sites that would meet the resourcing requirements but would also avoid
densely populated neighborhoods or present potentially disastrous traffic safety situations.

 

There are many in our community that already have compromised immune systems that will
suffer from the dust that will sweep through our neighborhood caused by the mining operation
and very heavy trucking use (as might the cyclists on the planned trails). Wildlife that we have
grown accustomed to seeing will be impacted. The noise from the gravel pit and the increase in
vehicle, cyclist and pedestrian use and possible accidents as a result, will cut deeply into the
quality of life that we all counted on when we moved to Pagosa Springs.

 

Studies show that nearby our property values will go down as a result, especially those in nearest proximity of the
gravel pit. With over 1,000,000 acres of San Juan National Forest, we cannot understand why
this site so close to homes, was ever chosen in the 1st place, but, we will continue to work with USFS and Archuleta County through the NEPA process to have our voice heard. Please support us!

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How you can get involved

• Please join the community in fighting this gravel pit location by signing the petition,
  signing up for our feed on our website, joining our Facebook Page, filing an online
  complaint, and contacting the District Ranger, Josh Peck and our County Commissioners directly via phone and email (contact info on our website).
  • Sign the (online) petition here: https://chng.it/bGmnjqXK82
  • Whom to contact (website) here: https://www.stopthejacksonmtnpit.com/
  • The website also includes information and resources provided by the USFS

 

A lot of work has been done so far to defeat the gravel pit in SJRV, but unfortunately, the

process is nowhere near completed. Please support our effort where you can.

San Juan River Village POA

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