Clearcut an Open Space Tree Farm to Pave a 4-Acre Wood Chipping and Grinding Operation. Can you hear me now?
Despite the sensitivity of horses to noise - especially persistent industrial noises - and despite being surrounded by equestrian facilities, and dozens of homeowners - many of whom have horses - Boulder County is planning to include a massive 4-acre wood chipping and grinding lot at the site of its an industrial-scale waste facility being designed for construction on Open Space. The County told neighbors it anticipates receiving, cutting, grinding and chipping the entire County’s inventory of Emerald Ash Borer-infested trees in the coming years. The shredded wood pulp, the County says, is necessary to feed the bio-decomposition of food and human waste and animal manure. In addition to the non-stop shrill wood grinding and chipping sounds that will be audible for miles, nearby residents will be subject to the piercing sounds of backing-alarms of dozens of dumping trucks every day and the non-stop operation of bucket loaders, skid-steer loaders, dump trucks and massive industrial compost grinders.
There is NOTHING quiet - or compatible with surrounding uses - about an industrial-scale 4-acre wood chipping/grinding lot and bio-waste facility in the middle of an equestrian-dense, residential community with deep agrarian roots.