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Planning board approves rezoning to expand LEOs gravel pit amid wildlife safeguards
Summary
The Sweetwater County Planning and Zoning Board approved a rezoning from Agricultural to MD-1 that will allow expansion of the LEOs gravel pit from a 40-acre operation toward a proposed 160-acre footprint; the applicant said it has coordinated with Wyoming Game and Fish to avoid a pronghorn migration corridor.
The Sweetwater County Planning and Zoning Board on a voice vote approved a zone-up amendment to allow expansion of the existing LEOs gravel pit from the current 40-acre footprint into approximately 160 acres. Staff said the rezoning is consistent with the county zoning resolution and the comprehensive plan and recommended approval.
Staff reported no substantive objections from most reviewing agencies; Tesoro Logistics and Lumen flagged no conflicts and Rocky Mountain Power asked that the applicant account for a transmission line that runs through the southeast portion of the parcel. Justin Monte, a company representative attending virtually, said the mining team has worked with the Wyoming Game and Fish to reduce impacts on a pronghorn migration corridor and has adjusted plans to abandon the portion of the parcel closest to the highway and transmission-line right-of-way. “We have been working extensively with the Wyoming Game and Fish. This is a prong horn migration corridor,” Monte said, adding the company has “modified some of our practices and aligned with theirs, to make sure we’re not impacting any of those pathways or corridors.”
Monte told the board the company will provide a mine plan for review; staff said any future operator would still require an approved mine plan and coordination with Rocky Mountain Power before operations could proceed. The applicant and staff described the change as compatible with surrounding land uses and existing MD-1 zoning parcels nearby.
A member of the public, Bill King, spoke in support of the rezoning. After a motion and a second, the board approved the zone change by voice vote. The board’s recommendation will be forwarded to the Board of County Commissioners as part of the normal permitting and mine-plan review process.
