A mining company near Brooksville wants to expand, but some are worried that the expansion could disturb residents, a hospital and a historic African-American cemetery.
Cemex, a rock mining company, wants to expand its Brooksville mine to an area north of highway 50, across from Bayfront Health Center.
Tina Henize is against new mining in Hernando County.
"Blasting in front of the hospital and around people with health issues not to mention the environmental aspects and worst of all for me is the cemetery," she said.
Old Spring Hill Cemetery, a historic African-American Cemetery is in the midst of the proposed expansion.
Henize said, "We don’t think they’re going to destroy the cemetery, although that remains to be seen. But even digging around a cemetery if you have any respect for the fallen, and in this case for many reasons that are not associated with justice, lets put it that way."
We contacted Cemex and they said they have checked vibration levels and say their mining won’t disturb the cemetery.
For the expansion to happen, the county commissioners will have to pass an ordinance allowing private land to be leased for industrial use.
Cemex says the county would gain $2.3 million a year by allowing this.
Henize said, "There’s no reason why they need to do this, they just want to do it to make some more money."
