Historic Brattonsville objects to expansion of adjacent dirt mine

A McConnells businessman wants to expand his dirt mining operation from 5 to 25 acres, over the objections of the York County Culture & Heritage Museums which operates the adjacent Historic Brattonsville.

Robert Clawson has asked the York County Zoning Board of Appeals to grant him a special exception to expand mine operations. The board will consider Clawson’s request at 6 p.m. Thursday.

Expanding the mine also requires a permit from the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control. Clawson has indicated to county staff he will file for that permit if the zoning board grants his special exception.

Clawson has operated a cellulose landfill at the site near the intersection of Brattonsville Road and Bookout Road. In 1994, the county planning commission granted him a special exception for the landfill and DHEC issued a landfill permit in 2004. The landfill occupies a small portion of the 196-acre site. The expected life of the landfill is 30 years, according to the DHEC permit.

In 2010, the zoning board granted Clawson a special exception for a 5-acre mine where dirt is removed and sold to developers for fill material. In May 2014, the zoning board granted Clawson a special exception to operate a composting and chipping operation at the landfill.

As proposed, the mine expansion would be toward Brattonsville Road, but not visible from the road. In his application, Clawson proposed mining to a depth of 70 feet below existing grade. He estimates the life of the expanded mine would be 20 years.

York County officials want to limit the depth of mining to 20 feet – the depth allowed under the mine’s current DHEC permit. Other proposed conditions are blasting would not be allowed and only topsoil, sand and clay could be mined, not rock or other material.

Carey Tilley, director of the York County Culture & Heritage Museums, said the expansion threatens Historic Brattonsville in several ways.

A mining operation adjacent to the museum’s property is not conducive to the “back-in-time” feeling Historic Brattonsville is trying to create for its visitors, he said.

A likely increase in truck traffic also is a concern, he said.

Tilley raised the traffic issue when the zoning board approved the special exception for the composting and chipping operation. As part of the conditions of the special exception for the composting and chipping operation, Clawson agreed to cease operation for 14 days per year for scheduled events at Historic Brattonsville and to post a right-turn only sign for truckers, directing them north on Brattonsville Road, away from the historic property.

“We don’t have a good sense of the number of trucks but ... we know it will be too many,” he said, adding there is no way Clawson can control the direction trucks come to his facility.

Tilley said the truck traffic presents a safety issue for Historic Brattonsville which straddles each side of Brattonsville Road. The trucks also can cause potentially harmful vibrations to historic buildings near the road.

In deciding whether to grant the special exception the zoning board can consider if the mine would have a negative impact on existing public services and public facilities such as Historic Brattonsville.

This story was originally published April 8, 2015 at 6:53 PM with the headline "Historic Brattonsville objects to expansion of adjacent dirt mine."