OLIVIA -- Renville County and Duininck Bros. Inc. of Prinsburg remain in a hard way over hard rock mining.
The county is charging that Duininck Bros. has failed to abide by terms of a contract requiring the company to reclaim a hard rock mining operation along the Minnesota River that was found to be in violation of the Wild and Scenic River Act.
Attorney Scott Anderson told the County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday that he is sending company president Harris Duininck a letter. It demands that the company meet with the county's environmental service officer and make arrangements within 30 days to get the work done.
If the company does not do so, Anderson has drafted a lawsuit the county will file in district court alleging a breach of contract by the company. A copy of the draft lawsuit is being sent along with the letter to make clear the county's intent, according to Anderson.
"It's pretty simple, gentlemen,'' said Anderson, the county's attorney for environmental issues. Anderson said that Harris Duininck signed a contract on July 1, 2004, committing the company to a reclamation plan for the site in Section 20 of Beaver Falls Township. The company also posted a $15,000 bond.
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The contract allows the company to remove excavated rock that was stockpiled there as part of the reclamation process. Along with removing the rock, the company committed itself to placing a 6-inch layer of topsoil on the mined area and seeding it to vegetation, according to the attorney.
The contract requires that the rock was to be removed and the reclamation completed by Jan. 1, 2006.
Almost one full year later, Anderson said there is no evidence that the work is completed. Commissioners reported that they have seen little activity at the site during the past year. The large piles of rock that had been previously excavated remain largely intact, they said.
Contacted by the Tribune after the meeting, Harris Duininck said he could not comment until he had an opportunity to review the correspondence from the county's attorney.
The dispute between Duininck Bros. and Renville County dates to 2003, when the company's conditional use permit to mine the site expired. Duininck Bros. sought to renew the permit, but the county discovered that much of the operation was taking place on property included in the area designated under the state's Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.
The act seeks to protect the granite outcrops and other unique geologic, biological and visual assets along a narrow corridor of the Minnesota River. It allows for gravel mining to occur, but prohibits hard rock mining.
As a result, the commissioners denied the company's request for a conditional use permit to continue operations there and ordered that the site be reclaimed.
Anderson said the reclamation plan agreed to by Duininck Bros. is very detailed. He described it as a compromise that offered a "win-win'' situation for both the company and the public.
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The plan allowed the company to take advantage of the rock already excavated at the site, terming its removal a part of the reclamation process. At the same time, it ended the illegal mining activity and reclaimed the excavated area.
There was also a second issue in dispute between the county and Duininck Bros. at the site. The Renville County Soil and Water Conservation District had identified protected wetlands on a small portion of the site. Duininck Bros. contested the finding, but a state oversight board concurred with the county and ordered the company to protect the wetlands.
Anderson said the small wetland area was known and taken into consideration when the reclamation contract was approved. The presence of the wetlands should not have hindered operations or reclamation work at the site.
