Despite amending a law to make the removal and excavation of rocks more restrictive on construction companies pursuing demolition, the town of Mamaroneck is now considering further adjustments to the law in light of discovering significant health risks associated with the practice.
The Town Council approved the amended legislation on Sept. 7, which requires rock breaking companies and residents to file for a permit for rock removal, regardless of the total amount of cubic feet of land disturbed by construction, and to complete demolition within a 15-day timeframe. However, after a concerned resident submitted a letter to be made part of the official record of the public hearing, town lawmakers determined that further amendments to the law would be appropriate to combat health hazards.
The town code previously mandated that any rock removal work that disturbed more than 2,000 cubic feet shall be illegal unless a permit had been issued for a subject property. Following the issuance of the permit, construction companies were required to perform demolition within 15 days, excluding weekends and public holidays listed in the New York state general construction law.
According to Town Supervisor Nancy Seligson, a Democrat, the new amendment is aimed at limiting noise pollution and eliminating a loophole that allows rock removers to work their way around the 15-day regulation by proposing to disturb just less than 2,000 cubic feet of rock. The Review previously reported that the rock removal law was created in 2007 to address similar noise concerns from excavations that lasted for an extended period of time.
Among those concerned with the new amendment is resident Joseph Lanni, who wrote the letter addressing the risks of rock removal. According to Lanni, there are no local regulations addressing the health issues and very little public awareness of the risks associated with rock chipping.
“With the public health risks that [mechanical demolition] poses, the law has to be strengthened far beyond what its present format is,” Lanni said. “Risk of silica exposure is very real, [and] the municipal code is totally devoid of any regulations protecting the public against these health hazards.”
According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, OSHA, crystalline silica, a common surface material exposed during rock removal, is known to cause silicosis, a serious lung disease, as well as increase the risk of lung cancer and other systemic diseases.
“It was assumed that rock removers themselves knew the requirements and guidelines, and would conduct work responsibly,” Seligson said. “Now that it was pointed out more clearly to us, we will make sure we have the right policy.”
In light of the discovery, Seligson said the town board will consider further adjustments to the rock chipping law, or rather seek to enforce OSHA regulations that will alleviate the health risks. “We are going to have our building inspector take a look and have further discussion about how best to incorporate new measures into our laws or about [federal] laws that already incorporate it,” she said. “We are just not sure yet.”
Lanni said he would prefer if the town banned hydraulic rock removal completely, but mentioned that it would be beneficial to at least prevent rock removers from using heavy duty fracturing machines that extensively pollute residential areas.
