City Appeals to Drivers' Hatred of Busted Windshields in Latest Billboard Against CEMEX on SR 14 Freeway

Coalition of Nearly 8,000 Oppose CEMEX Plans for a 69 Million Ton Mine

SANTA CLARITA, Calif., Sept. 19 -- The City of Santa Clarita this week launched the second round of its billboard campaign against a 69 million ton mega mine to be located adjacent to schools and thousand of homes. The billboard campaign highlights just some of the many dangers and unwanted impacts that the massive mine operated by multinational mining giant CEMEX would bring to the region.

The new 80-foot billboard is worded: "Broken Windshield Already? ... Just Wait," along with the phrase: "CEMEX Mega Mining," with a red line through the words. Located on Highway 14 at Sand Canyon in the City of Santa Clarita, the billboard features an image of a broken car windshield -- a loathsome occurrence on this stretch of highway that is expected to increase as a result of the mega mine's estimated addition of 1,164 trucks that will be added to local freeways every day. The mine will remove enough sand, rock and gravel to fill the Rose Bowl 127 times throughout the duration of the mining operations.

In addition to the new billboard, the City has also launched an outreach effort to the League of California Cities and its hundreds of elected officials and other members across the state, to education officials about this dangerous mega mine and to solicit support for its efforts to stop the massive mine.

Santa Clarita has been fighting the siting of the massive sand, rock and gravel mining project in Soledad Canyon, just east of the City limits, since 1999, because the full project as planned by CEMEX will have long-term negative impacts for the City and the Los Angeles area at large, including:

  *  Adding up to 1,164 big truck trips every day to Los Angeles area
     freeways;

  *  Putting 18-wheelers and other trucks onto local freeways every one
     and a half to two minutes, 24 hours a day;

  *  Blasting up to four times a week with 8,800 pounds per blast;

  *  Mining, excavation, stockpiling, crushing and processing sand and
     gravel 17 hours per day, Monday through Saturday

  *  Trucking and concrete batch plant operations occurring 24 hours
     per day, seven days per week;

  *  CEMEX's water demands will dry-up the Santa Clara River at the project
     site, devastating fish and wildlife; including "take" (killing) of the
     Three-Armored Stickleback Fish;

  *  The mine will exceed the maximum risk allowed by the AQMD Toxic Rules
     for new sources by 250%; (AQMD) and;

  *  Causing State air quality standards for particulate emissions to be
     exceeded by more than two-times, and causing the state standard for
     Nitrogen Dioxides to be exceeded by more than 1.5 times

This is a legacy Santa Clarita community leaders and the near 8,000 member Citizens' Coalition do not want for the Santa Clarita Valley and the greater Los Angeles area.

"Everywhere I go, residents, business and community leaders tell me that they do not want this massive mega mining project, as proposed, in the Santa Clarita Valley," commented Ken Pulskamp, City Manager for Santa Clarita. "The project is just too large, and the impacts too detrimental for a community that is home to tens of thousands of families."

Santa Clarita supports federal legislation introduced by Congressman Howard "Buck" McKeon to limit mining in the area by CEMEX to historic levels of 300,000 tons annually, while also providing compensation for CEMEX. CEMEX has opposed the legislation, announcing instead to begin mining in 2008 and at levels 16 times greater than historic levels for this area, despite overwhelming community opposition to the size and scope of this mining project.

For more information, go to www.StopCEMEXMegaMine.com.