We are writing this letter of petition to:

Commissioner Basil Seggos, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, 625 Broadway, Albany, NY 12233-1011

The Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of New York State, NYS State Capitol Building, Albany, NY 12224

 Dear Commissioner Seggos and Governor Cuomo, 

We, the undersigned residents, business owners, and parents of children who attend local schools in the Town and/or Village of Hamburg, New York, formally urge the DEC to deny AL Asphalt any air permits for their proposed site operations at 5690 Camp Road, Hamburg, NY. If AL Asphalt is allowed to open the proposed hot-mix asphalt production plant, there will be significant and irreparable harm to the local environment and health of the people living, working, or attending school in close proximity. The proposed plant is within 1200 feet of a daycare center where children as young as 6 weeks old attend, a doctor's office specializing in asthma treatment that sees thousands of patients a year and the recreational fields of the nearby Hamburg Middle and High Schools. The school buildings are 1600 feet away and have almost 2,000 children between them in daily attendance who would be exposed to the pollutants and particulate matter that will escape the stacks of the plant if allowed to open. There are 12 schools and daycare centers within a 3 mile radius of the proposed plant. AL Asphalt's own air permit application notes that hazardous, cancer-causing chemicals such as formaldehyde,benzene, and acetaldhyde will be released through the production process. We believe the environmental study they hired Orion Environmental Solutions to do is based on flawed wind rate calculations. Additionally, as stated by Ted Casey, Hamburg Highway Superintendent in his testimony to the Hamburg Town Planning Board, there are strong concerns about the "fugitive emissions which are the release of Hazardous Air Pollutants while storing and moving asphalt."  Furthermore, there are wetlands nearby with one less than 700 feet from the property line. As Hamburg is an MS4 community, water  contamination and stormwater runoff are concerns as well.  We believe the proposed plant is in violation of the Town of Hamburg Zoning Codes and does not align with the Town of Hamburg Comprehensive Plan. We urge you to take under your consideration our collective community concerns, as well as the statements of opposition to the plan from Erie County Executive, Mark Poloncarz, Mayor Moses of the Village of Hamburg, and Jim Shaw, Town of Hamburg Supervisor. Regardless of what the Town Planning Board's ruling on this matter is, DEC has a responsibility to  honor your stated commitment to prevent and control air and water pollution by denying AL Asphalt their state air permit facility. Keep Hamburg Clean and Green! Thank you.