On Monday September 25, reversing their previous 5-0 decision objecting to the Final Environmental Impact Report as it stood, the Mt. Shasta City Council, in a 3-1 vote (Barbara Wagner opposed and the Mayor absent) decided to not challenge the FIER or to appeal the upcoming Planning Commission certification. They will not delay the project in any way.  In the room were the conservative business people, a Crystal Geyser representative, Siskiyou Economic Development and Board of Supervisor Ed Valenzuela. It seems they all knew what would be happening at the meeting while the public was left out. The Crystal Geyser project was not specifically mentioned on the agenda, nor was it “noticed” that there would be any “actionable” item. It appears that City Manager Bruce Pope was blindsided as well. In the meeting, Tim Stearns stated that  he negotiated with the County and Crystal Geyser and the City’s questions and issues are ‘taken care of’. But the issue is: this was done behind closed doors and the public has not seen anything in writing from the County or Crystal Geyser!

So the City of Mt. Shasta will not be opposing the seriously flawed FEIR or appealing the County certification. We are left with the question, will the City do anything to protect our citizens and environment from damages of the project? It will now be up to the Community, W.A.T.E.R. and the Gateway Neighborhood Association to move forward and stand for those protections.

We await the decision at the Planning Commission hearing, Wed. the 27th  at noon, Miner’s Inn, Yreka. We encourage the public to attend, although there will be no opportunity for public comment.