The Bureau of Land Management told Cemex Corp. on Friday that the agency is terminating two 10-year contracts to mine in Soledad Canyon near Santa Clarita, citing non-performance by the cement company. The decision by the BLM ends contracts issued in 2000 to Cemex, headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico. The federal contracts allowed the mining of 56 million tons of sand and gravel from the 493-acre property, but local residents opposed the mine because of traffic and environmental concerns. The city contended that mining operations would take place up to 17 hours a day, six days a week, with blasting taking place twice a week for the first 10 years, and four times a week in the second 10 years. Shipping from the concrete batch plant could occur seven days a week depending on market conditions. “Today is a historic day in Santa Clarita,” Bob Kellar, mayor pro tem, said in a statement. “We have worked hard for the last 16 years to make sure our community was protected from the effects of a mega-mining project and that hard work by many, including our city, our elected officials and those at all levels of government, has paid off.”
