Ordinarily, we try not to take pleasure in the misfortune of others. But we have to admit to kind of enjoying it when this construction truck got stuck in the mud on our property this morning. It was sunk so deep they had to use the gigantic backhoe to drag it out.
In fact, we figure it’s some kind of cosmic payback for yesterday’s construction line list violation. You see, as we were trying to enjoy a quiet Sunday breakfast, construction crews gathered, fired up equipment, and started doing we’re-not-sure-what in our backyard. Here they are:
But our agreement clearly states that no work will take place on our property on Sundays. Our ROW agent promptly looked into the matter, which mostly took care of the problem– although our property was still a thruway for equipment for most of the day.
Jeff, it looks to me from these and other photos like they are not properly preventing erosion on your property. Erosion eventually leads to sediment getting into rivers, lakes, and wetlands. You should document with plenty of photos and send them to the Michigan DEQ and the EPA. The little orange plastic fences they sometimes use are pretty worthless. Be sure to get some photos during/after this week’s rain, and look for any evidence of gullies forming anywhere.
Thank you for all the great information, photos, etc.
Thanks for the tip, Patricia. We are taking lots of photos. And I haven’t forgotten that I still owe you an email!
Thanks for sharing the pic of the stuck truck.
Made my day!! 🙂
Any landowners concerned that the Enbridge contractors are not following environmental rules and regulations (like mixing of soils or putting in place sediment controlling methods) please document with photos and videos so we can present this issue to the MDEQ. Last fall, NWF tried to get the MDEQ to require additional environmental monitors but they did not find it within their scope. We need to prove to the MDEQ (and our lawmakers) that this needs to be within their scope! email me if you have questions: wallaceb@nwf.org
Thomas Friedman just came out with an article against Keystone. I’d like to suggest that homeowners along Line 6b invite Friedman to visit Michigan to learn about what it’s like to be homeowners along a pipeline. And, the environmental dangers of pipelines wrt the Kalamazoo spill. This is a very high profile journalist/writer who could bring the spotlight to our cause. At the very least, he should know about the blog.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/10/opinion/sunday/friedman-no-to-keystone-yes-to-crazy.html?_r=0
Did you get permission from the township to open a mud bog? I’ve got a few friends who would love to come over with their high-rise trucks.