McKeon Introduces Soledad Canyon Mining Bill
Rep. Howard P. "Buck" McKeon (R-CA) introduced today the Soledad Canyon Mine Leases Adjustment Act, a bill to help resolve the ongoing dispute between the City of Santa Clarita and the Cemex Corporation over mining leases in the Soledad Canyon.
"My purpose in introducing this legislation is to put on the table the basis for a settlement that will protect both the needs of Santa Clarita and the concerns of the Cemex Corporation," said McKeon. "While I don't believe that this bill is the final word on the Soledad mining issue, I do believe that it will serve to move the process forward."
The dispute between the city of Santa Clarita and Cemex Corporation revolves around mining leases that were purchased from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) by Cemex Corporation. The leases allow Cemex to establish a large scale gravel mine in the Soledad Canyon. Santa Clarita argues that such a mine would have a negative impact on the infrastructure, traffic and environment in the region. Currently, Santa Clarita holds title to the surface in the disputed area, while Cemex has rights to the mineral resources.
"There is no doubt in my mind that Santa Clarita's concerns are real and that they have genuine concerns. For its part, Cemex wants to be compensated. My legislation is a first step toward bringing balance to those two positions and to get the parties to begin to talk about solutions, instead of talking about their problems," added McKeon.
The McKeon legislation cancels the Cemex leases and prohibits BLM from re-leasing the land except at "historic levels," which are defined in the bill as 300,000 tons of aggregate produced for sale per calendar year. In exchange, Cemex is given minerals of equal value in the form of credits that can be used in other areas of California. The value assigned to the Cemex leases is equal to an amount that includes the amount paid to the United States for the leases, and amounts expended by Cemex in securing the leases and bring them into production.
McKeon re-emphasized that he does not see his bill as the end of the process. "My bill is not the miracle solution and we still have a lot of work to do, but I think we are beginning to see the contours of a resolution to this dispute. With some hard work and good will on all sides, I think we will resolve the issue to everyone's satisfaction," he remarked.
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http://mckeon.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=44219