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CNY residents have plenty of questions during Micron public comment period

Members of local groups are concerned about the impact Micron might have on the environment and fair labor practices and protections for workers. They're gathered outside the Carnegie Building in June a day after the Micron DEIS was released to deliver the necessary signature to ask for an extension for the open public comment period.
John Smith / WAER News
Members of local groups are concerned about the impact Micron might have on the environment and want fair labor practices and protections for workers. In June, they gathered outside the offices of the Carnegie Building a day after the Micron DEIS was released to deliver the necessary signatures to extend the open public comment period.

Onondaga County residents are asking plenty of questions after reading through some of Micron’s 20,000 page Draft Environmental Impact Statement. They’ll share their concerns at the only public hearing scheduled for July 24th after already expressing them in other forums like this workshop over the weekend.

Unidentified speaker: “When things like this are done, there’s an environmental impact study, right? Doesn’t the federal government want to know all these questions that this presenter is giving us right now that are lacking in their report?”

Chances are others have similar thoughts about the massive semi-conductor facility to be built in the Town of Clay. Organizing manager for jobs to move America Khadeejah Ahamd served as one of the moderators at the recent community workshop.

“There's a lot of concerns, especially for like the local residents, but then also just in general for the greater Central New York area," she said. "We love our water. You know, we love our lakes and rivers and it's something that makes this area so special. So the idea that it could be contaminated or the amount of water used in the manufacturing process, you know, is very scary.

Onondaga County is hosting three public hearings about Micron’s DEIS on Thursday at Liverpool High School: 10 am - 1 pm, 2 – 5 pm and 6 – 9 pm. Click here to view the report. Hard copies are also available at Onondaga County Public Libraries. To find out more about how you can comment about the project, click here.