
News
December 16, 2024
By: Dwayne Page
Residents trying to stop Jones Brothers Contractors LLC from starting up a rock quarry in the Liberty/ Alexandria area are being afforded a public hearing to speak out against the state’s issuance of a water discharge permit for the proposed operation and the potential impact on human health and the environment.
(Click link below to access mor information on this proposed project)
https://www.tn.gov/environment/ppo-public-participation/ppo-public-participation/ppo-dmgr.html
In a public notice issued Wednesday, November 13 the Division of Mineral and Geologic Resources announced that it would hold a public hearing regarding the proposed issuance of a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit. The public hearing will be held Tuesday, December 17 at 6 p.m. at the DeKalb County Complex. An information session will be held at 5 p.m.
During a posted public comment period through September 27, residents in the Liberty/Alexandria area through fax, emails, and phone calls requested a hearing on the proposed permit application for a new limestone quarry to be named Jones Alexandria Quarry at 2159 Old Highway 53, Liberty in DeKalb County. The receiving stream for the proposed discharge of treated mine and wastewater and industrial waste is Helton Creek. The public hearing will be presented via video-teleconference and may be attended online, by phone, or in-person.
The purpose of the hearing is to gather information from the public relevant to a final decision on the permit application. Comments not related to water quality or to the information contained in the permit application will not be considered in the decision-making process. Issues such as air quality, zoning, blasting, noise, dust, and traffic are not related to water quality and are not regulated by the Division of Mineral and Geologic Resources or the NPDES program therefore, consideration of these issues would not contribute relevant information for the proposed permit.
Daniel Lawrence, Program Manager Division of the Mineral & Geologic Resources Mining Section in the Knoxville Environmental Field Office spoke with WJLE by phone in August to explain the reasons for a water discharge permit.
“Ultimately this is a water quality permit so this regulates any water that would be discharged from the facility,” said Lawrence. “The idea being we put limits on that water in order to protect the stream to make sure any water leaving the facility is not going to pollute the stream and cause any problems. That is the main authority the state has over mining facilities. We get a lot of questions and concerns about other aspects of mining and things like blasting, truck trafficking noise, and dust but we don’t have any authority over that and its outside of the scope of this draft permit,” Lawrence explained.
He also described the meaning of the term “wastewater” in the Jones Brothers permit application.
“When you hear that word wastewater a lot of people assume sewage, domestic wastewater and that sort of thing. That is technically the correct term but its really rain that has come into contact with processing rock so if there is any rain that falls on a rock crusher the water that runs off of that is considered to be wastewater by the legal technicalities. It doesn’t mean sewage or domestic wastewater discharge in this case,” said Lawrence.
Warren County DA Indicted in Shots Fired Incident Last Month in Smithville
December 16, 2024
By: Dwayne Page
The DeKalb County Grand Jury met today (Monday) in a special session and returned a sealed indictment against Christopher Robert Stanford of McMinnville, the District Attorney General of the 31st Judicial District, charging him with reckless endangerment and discharging a firearm into an occupied habitation stemming from a shots fired incident near Bell Street Apartments in Smithville during the apprehension of three suspects in a Warren County triple homicide last month.
Stanford, age 43, turned himself in this morning (Monday) and has posted a $10,000 bond. He will make an appearance in DeKalb County Criminal Court for arraignment on January 7.
Sheriff Patrick Ray said the investigation of Stanford was conducted by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation at the request of Bryant Dunaway, District Attorney General of the 13th Judicial District who serves DeKalb County.
The shots fired incident occurred during the apprehension of 28-year-old Caleb Dias Brookins and Jessica Root, wanted by the Warren County Sheriff’s Department as suspects in the triple murder, and 21-year-old Hannah McKenzi Rose of Hickory Hollow Terrace in Antioch, Tennessee. Rose was charged locally by the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department with aggravated assault on a first responder and evading arrest in a motor vehicle.
During the episode, Sheriff Ray said a Homeland Security agent from Warren County sustained a leg injury after being struck by a vehicle trying to make a getaway being driven by Rose with Brookins as her passenger. Before that, Rose rammed a DeKalb Sheriff’s Department truck operated by Chief Deputy Brian Williams with Detective Stephen Barrett as a passenger, but they were not injured. Although no one else was hurt, Sheriff Ray said Stanford, the Warren County District Attorney fired shots on Rose’s vehicle. Neither the vehicle nor the suspects were hit by the gunfire. However, according to the TBI the shots fired by Stanford struck a home occupied by a woman and her three children. They too were apparently not injured. Brookins fled on foot but was taken into custody a couple of hours later without incident by TBI. Brookins was found near Bell Street on Wade Street walking down the road. He was unarmed. According to Sheriff Ray, one of the suspects (Root) had lived here at one time and she has family here.
Todd Cantrell Awarded DCHS Teacher of the Month for November
December 16, 2024
By: Dwayne Page
The November Teacher of the Month award at DeKalb County High School goes to Todd Cantrell.
For winning the honor, Cantrell received a certificate from the school and a gift card for a meal at F.Z. Webb & Sons Soda Fountain.
Cantrell, a machine shop teacher, was selected by the administration as Teacher of the Month. He has been a DCHS educator in the CTE program for 16 years. His father-in-law, Wayne Fuson held the same position, formerly known as general metals instructor, for more than 30 years until his retirement.
“Its really good knowing people appreciate you. I have been blessed in my teaching career to work with some good administrators,” said Cantrell.
Todd and his wife Jenny have two grown daughters, Madison, who is now working for a consulting firm in Dallas Texas, and Megan Cantrell, who attends Tennessee Tech and is doing her student teaching in PE at Algood Elementary School.
“I went to TCAT in machine shop at McMinnville, formerly known as Vo Tech. I worked at Smithville Tool and Die for a few months, then went to Kingston Timers for 12 years in a tool & die apprenticeship program. From there I was at Shiroki for a year and a half working a weekend shift and I then started subbing (teaching),” said Cantrell.
He is the son of Charles “Chili Bean” and Diana Cantrell
