The owner of the 14.3-acre Padua Ridge sand and gravel mine that abuts the Watkins Glen State Park and a Catholic cemetery above the village is proposing 60.95-acre expansion, the state Department of Environmental Conservation disclosed Thursday. The DEC said it plans a pair of public hearings on the project in February.
Mining at the site began in the 1970s. Excavated sand and gravel is processed onsite for sale as aggregate. The developer, Martin Wojcik, president of It’s Greener Now, Inc. (ING), claims that the Padua Ridge expansion will not create significant noise, alter traffic volume, cause runoffs or have any impact on the state park, which is one of the state’s major tourist attractions.
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