Tag Archive for: read custom soils

Wareham: Voters Seek Accountability for AD Makepeace Co. Sand Mining

May 25, 2025

Select Board yet to act on 2021, 2023 Town Meeting calls to hold Makepeace accountable
Letter says Makepeace deprived the Town of a least $625,000 in earth removal fees

Background

AD Makepeace Co. is based in Wareham MA. It is one of the state’s largest private landowners, with about 12,000 acres in Wareham, Carver and Plymouth. Makepeace owns a large portion of the Town of Wareham and has considerable political clout in the Town. The company regularly donates to charitable causes and hosts recreational events to solidify its power– even “Arbor Day” which some find ironic due to the company’s massive destruction of forests and the environment. The Save the Pine Barrens You Tube channel is documenting Makepeace’s sand mining.

Makepeace’s core business is selling the sand from its mines via its sister company Read Custom Soils. Makepeace sells to industrial and commercial customers like concrete and asphalt facilities, golf courses, and more. Sand and gravel sales are highly profitable and prices have gone up 5 times in the last 5 years. Makepeace is also a cranberry grower but that business is break even business at best. Makepeace is also in the business of residential real estate development and industrial solar installations.

Read more in Sand Wars In Cranberry Country here.

Cranberry farming gives Makepeace a cover for its sand mining. It claims the sand mining is exempt from laws because it is “farming” and entitled to special protections. Read more about how the cranberry industry evades laws on sand mining in the Sand Wars report here.

Below: 85 acre AD Makepeace sand mine in Carver, MA. Makepeace claims this is cranberry agriculture. It put in a solar project to the left after sand mining and stripping 50 acres of pristine Pine Barrens forest starting in 2016.

Makepeace sand mining in Wareham

Makepeace has been sand mining for commercial sale in Wareham for decades. Residents observe the endless number of trucks leaving loaded with sand. The trucks are a safety hazard on the roads, destroy roads, and operate recklessly. Examples of the excessive truck traffic is on You Tube.

Makepeace has mined at least 2.5 million cubic yards from Wareham leveling up to 250 acres of forest. More mining is proposed at 140 Tihonet Road and possibly other locations. At today’s prices, the sand is worth up to $40 million.

Below: Google Earth aerial image of some mining sites in Wareham marked with yellow pin. Most are AD Makepeace, but other cranberry companies and sand and gravel companies operate without permits or in violation of permits.

Makepeace often portrays its sand mining as “site preparation” for industrial solar. The state has allowed Makepeace to destroy Priority Habitat for rare and endangered species in Warehan claiming that the sand mining is just site preparation for solar. For example in 2015, the state Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program issued a take permit for over 50 acres of Priority Habitat and 12 species at the 160 Tihonet Road mining site that is now solar. Read more here.

“The site was formerly used for sand mining, which cleared the site of vegetation….Because sand mining is ongoing, site grades fluctuate; final grades will range from 54 ft to 64 ft NAVD.”

Makepeace mining violates Wareham Earth Removal Bylaw for over a decade

Wareham regulates earth removal. The Earth Removal Bylaw requires a permit and strict plan conditions to protect the environment and residents, and requires mining companies to pay 25 cents per cubic yard for sand removed. A typical tractor trailer is about 24 cubic yards and would owe a fee of $6.00 — a small amount compared to the value of the sand.

The Town Select Board is responsible for the Earth Removal Bylaw. It must ensure that companies doing mining get permits and comply with them. This includes paying fees.

Below: Excerpt from Town of Wareham General Bylaw, Earth Removal Regulations, Section 4, requiring fees of 25 cents per cubic yard of earth removed.

The Select Board has never applied or enforced the Wareham Earth Removal Bylaw against Makepeace and only rarely against other companies. The chair of the Select Board confirmed this in a 2021 Letter.

By allowing Makepeace to mine without a permit the Select Board deprived Wareham of up to $625,000 in revenue.

October 2021: voters approve sand mining audit, collection of fees, penalties

In response to growing alarm about the scope and scale of Makepeace’s sand mining and environment destruction, Wareham voters proposed a Town Meeting warrant article. Article 18 urged the Select Board to audit Makepeace’s mining. The article passed almost unanimously. Read the Wareham Week story here.

Below: Town of Wareham Town Meeting Warrant Article 18, October, 2021. It requires an audit a four AD Makepeace mining sites, and others.

December 4, 2021: Select Board votes to hire an expert

In response to the Town’s vote to approve Article 18, the audit, the Wareham Select Board met and on December 4, 2021 voted 4-1 to proceed with the audit and collection of fees and penalties. On January 4, 2022, the Board discussed the topic again. Read the Wareham Week story here.

The story reported a resident said the petitioner was “an unambiguous complaint” to the town about possible earth removal bylaw violations.”

At the January 4, 2022 Select Board meeting member Peter Teitelbaum, a Makepeace supporter, complained that seeking to enforce the bylaw was a “slippery slope”. Barry Cosgrove who proposed the Town Meeting Article in 2021 commented:

“If fulfilling a legal obligation under bylaw and respecting the will of the people is a slippery slope, what is the metaphor for ignoring a legal obligation and ignoring the will of the people?”

November 2022: group requests Town enforce Earth Removal Bylaw

With Makepeace’s sand and gravel mining continuing to ravage Wareham, local advocacy group Save the Pine Barrens sent a demand for enforcement of the Earth Removal Bylaw to the Town. The Town ignored the demand.

See the Enforcement Demand letter here. It documents violations at six locations including 160 Tihonet Road, Farm to Market Road and mining by cranberry companies Sure-Cran, Rounseville Hammond, and Fletcher, and a pit operated by Graziano.

March 2023: Ten Residents Group sends Notice of Intent to Sue

Still seeking action from the Town on sand mining, on March 17, 2023, a Ten Residents Group invoked the Massachusetts Citizen Suit Law, Chapter 214, 7A. Under this law, they can seek remedies for Damage to the Environment from Makepeace’s sand mining. Read the Wareham Ten Residents Notice Intent to Sue here.

Notice letter focuses on three Makepeace mining sites in Wareham and estimates the company removed at least 2.5 million cubic yards without permits. This deprived the Town of $625,000 in earth removal fees.

Read the A.D.Makepeace Reply to Notice of Intent to Sue 2023.04.14 here. Neither the Town nor the Attorney General responded. The matter is pending.

April 2023: Wareham voters approve funding for sand mining investigation

Over a year passed with no action on the 2021 to audit Makepeace’s sand mining and collect fees and penalties. In April 2023, the voters approved spending $50,000 for a sand mining investigation. Read the Wareham Week story here.

Read the Wicked Local story here: Expert opinion could quell earth removal ‘innuendo’ in Wareham

April 2024: still no action on voter’s call for sand mining investigation

As of April, 2024, the Wareham Select Board was still discussing how to carry out the 2021 voter’s Article 18 for an audit, penalties and fees for sand mining. Read the Wareham Week story here. In the meantime, sand mining continues.

Above: AD Makepeace sand mining, Farm to Market Road, Wareham, 2021. Image shows excavation into side of hill.

Makepeace claims of cranberry farming don’t add up

Makepeace has claimed time and again that earth removed from Wareham is for its “agricultural operations” such as building, refurbishing and winter sanding its own cranberry bogs.

Makepeace has mined enough sand around the region to fill Gillette Stadium about 2 miles high. The region-wide math does not add up. Nor do the Makepeace claims that the mining operations are “necessary” to build new agricultural projects. Read more about the laws and how they are evaded in Sand Wars.

Carver: Legal Efforts to Shut Down AD Makepeace Co. Sand Trucking Hub: Read Custom Soils

July 10, 2024

CLWC takes legal action, demands Carver Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) issue a cease and desist to shut down AD Makepeace Co. Read sand trucking terminal

CLWC responds to Carver ZBA arguments at May 29, 2024 public hearing: You’re Wrong! Read the July 9, 2024 letter here.

Who is Read Custom Soils? Learn more here.

CLWC fights to enforce laws on behalf of residents, environment

CLWC’s lawyers and scientists are working to get justice for residents and stop the environmental destruction by AD Makepeace’s sand mining. This trucking hub is the key to Makepeace’s sand sales. This facility does not have the required zoning permit from the Carver Planning Board.

CLWC is using the zoning laws to shut down Read. Here are the steps:

On February 22, 2024, CLWC demanded that the Carver Building Commissioner issue a cease and desist order to stop Read from operating a “Truck and Freight” terminal without the Special Permit. The CLWC demand letter is here.
The Building Commissioner refused to issue a cease and desist to Read. CLWC estimates Read generates up to 500 truck trips daily. The Building Commissioner did not investigate the issue of truck traffic volume.
On March 12, 2024 CLWC appealed to the ZBA under the state Zoning Law and the Town Zoning Bylaw. See the appeal here.
On May 22, 2024 CLWC requested the ZBA enforce their bylaws and issue a cease and desist at 46 Federal rd. Read the request here.

The hearing on CLWC’s enforcement request started on May 29, 2024 and continues July 17, 2024.

Carver Officials Ignore Years of Harms Suffered by Local Residents, Damage to Environment

Makepeace uses Read as a truck and freight terminal to sell and distribute sand it mines from its surround land. T

For a decade or more, Carver residents living near sand mining sites and who are impacted by truck traffic, noise and vibrations from mining operations have written, emails, and called state and local officials. They attend meetings of the Earth Removal Committee, Planning Board, Conservation Commission and Select Board to tell them about harms from the mining and trucking of sand and gravel abutting their homes.

Below: May, 2024: Massive AD Makepeace Co. 120 acre sand mine abutting Environmental Justice Community on Federal Road in Carver. This mine supplies Read Custom Soils with sand for commercial sale and distribution.

ZBA biased, sides with mining company over its own residents

During the May 29, 2024 public hearing on whether the ZBA should shut down Read, the ZBA was more concerned about protecting the interests of AD Makepeace Co., the owner of Read, rather than protecting residents’ health and well being

ZBA tried to dismiss the case on legal technicalities; this tactic is commonly used to deter residents from participating in the public process.
ZBA prevented Community Land and Water Coalition from presenting its slides, cut off residents as they spoke, and told residents that they had already spoken on this issue when they had not.
ZBA delayed its decision on the shut down until July 17, leaving residents to deal with the noise, vibrations and threat to drinking water for two more months.

The state law requires the ZBA to hold a public hearing on a request for enforcement of the zoning law. The ZBA must vote on whether there is a violation. CLWC has asked the ZBA to issue the cease and desist to Read. The first day of the ZBA public hearing was May 29, 2024. Watch the hearing here.

The ZBA chair argued with the lawyer for CLWC claiming the group had no legal right to bring the appeal. In a July 9, 2024 letter CLWC’s lawyer showed this is wrong. Read the letter here.

Plymouth Beach Sand Project: A Folly?

July 3, 2024

Plymouth’s $2.9 million beach nourishment project uses sand mined through the destruction of Carver’s forests and leveling of hills

Above: Site of the 120-acre A.D. Makepeace sand mine in Carver where forests have been clear-cut and valuable silica sand is extracted from beneath the hills. The sand mined from this area was transported to Plymouth Beach in 2023. As of May 2024, this remains an active sand mining site. Prior to strip mining, this area was an intact Pine Barrens forest classified under BioMap3 as “Interior Forest,” designated as high priority for protection. The mine is adjacent to two ponds identified by the Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program as Priority Habitats 512 and 514.

Sand erodes, blows out to sea
Taxpayer funded project OK’d in backroom deal between Carver Earth Removal Committee and sand mining giant AD Makepeace Co.
Beach nourishment is a $7 billion industry — Makepeace cashes in
Does clearing our forests and leveling hills to replenish the beach make sense?

The $2.9 Million Plymouth Beach Nourishment Project of 2023

In 2023, the Town of Plymouth, with $2.9 in taxpayer funding from the state contracted with Dig It Construction to install a “beach nourishment” project on Plymouth Long Beach. Read the Town’s letter to Dig It Construction here. The Plymouth Letter to Dig It is here.

Dig It planned to get the sand from AD Makepeace’s Read Custom Soils in Carver, about 9 miles from the Beach. Someone claimed that Makepeace’s “Load Restrictions” for sand hauling (the number of truckloads of sand it can haul off in a day) limited the ability to bring enough sand to Plymouth. So Plymouth and Carver got together with Makepeace to pursue a “waiver” from the Carver Earth Removal Committee. This was a ruse because Makepeace already had numerous earth removal permits allowing at least 150 trucks loads a day to leave Carver with sand. Learn more about Makepeace’s “earth removal “permits here.

Below: Makepeace mined the sand from pristine forests in Carver. Dig It Construction and other contractors trucked the sand about 9 miles from the mines to Plymouth Beach.

Makepeace’s Backroom Deal: Seeking Carver Earth Removal Bylaw Waiver to Increase Sand Sales

Despite holding at least four sand mining permits from Carver and transporting hundreds of truckloads of sand daily, Makepeace claimed it did not have enough for the Plymouth project. The manager of Read Custom Soils requested an “emergency waiver” from the Carver Earth Removal Committee to exempt Makepeace from the Town’s Earth Removal Bylaw. The Makepeace Letter addressed to the ERC can be found here.

The ERC granted the waiver as expected. The ERC Letter dated February 14, 2023, confirming the waiver for Makepeace, is available here.

The ERC letter verifies that the sand originated from Makepeace’s mines at Read Custom Soils on Federal Road in Carver. This allowed Makepeace to haul 50 truckloads per day, totaling 35,600 cubic yards, to Plymouth. With fees set at 25 cents per cubic yard for earth removal, A.D. Makepeace should have paid at least $8,900. However, they were exempt from paying these fees due to the emergency waiver.

Below is the Bylaw Makepeace and the ERC exploited to be able to take more sand from Carver to sell.

When resident investigators tried to find out the truth behind the back room deal, Carver’s lawyers refused to release all of the public records, claiming “Attorney Client Privilege” with the ERC. This is wrong. The ERC is a public entity — accountable to the public. Read the lawyer’s letter here.

See the Carver Earth Removal Bylaw here.

Who is AD Makepeace Co. and Read Custom Soils?

A.D. Makepeace and its subsidiary, Read Custom Soils, operate the largest aggregate sand and gravel mining operation east of the Mississippi. A.D. Makepeace also holds the distinction of being the largest landowner in Massachusetts. Their operations involve strip mining their land for sand and gravel, which is then marketed and sold through Read Custom Soils.

Learn more about AD Makepeace’s sand mining in the Sand Wars Report here.

Below: Another AD Makepeace sand mining location in Carver. This is the same day that the sand was being hauled to Plymouth Beach. March 23, 2023.

Conflicts of interest?

One of the companies that transported sand for Makepeace to Plymouth beach was Oiva Hannula Co., a cranberry and trucking company based in Carver, MA. In 2023, Scott Hannula, president of Oiva Hannula & Sons, Inc., was appointed as chair of the Carver Earth Removal Committee (ERC). The ERC is tasked with enforcing the Earth Removal Bylaw to promote public health, safety, and welfare. Scott Hannula benefits financially when the ERC grants permits to sand mining companies like AD Makepeace Co., as his company is hired to transport sand for these permitted operations.

Below: Hannula’s truck delivering sand to Plymouth Beach for AD Makepeace Co. Photo: 3/23/2023 Plymouth MA, Long Beach project.

Understanding Beach Nourishment: Is It Worthwhile?

A beach nourishment project is a coastal management strategy designed to restore eroded beaches or improve existing ones by adding sand or other sediments. Typically, this involves dredging or mining sand from alternate sources and depositing it onto the beach to expand its width or raise its elevation. However, sand is a finite resource. Is it sensible to strip mine land to place sand on a beach where it will inevitably erode or be carried away by wind and waves?

Learn more here.

The Hidden Costs of Beach Nourishment Projects

This isn’t the first project of its kind, and it’s likely not the last. Beach nourishment efforts often need to be repeated as sand inevitably blows away or returns to the ocean. While it provides a short-term fix for ongoing coastal erosion, exacerbated by more frequent and severe storms, research in Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science (Parkinson, Ogurcak 2021) indicates that beach nourishment isn’t a sustainable solution for mitigating climate change impacts on coastal communities.

These repeated projects come with costs and ecological disruptions, potentially impacting local habitats and wildlife. Despite being touted as a nature-based solution, beach nourishment has serious consequences. The extraction, transportation, and deposition of sand can disrupt ecosystems and marine life, disturbing the delicate balance of shorelines. Negative impacts include the burial of biota, loss of habitats in nearshore sandbars, and disturbance of bird and other animal nesting areas. Moreover, some species, like sand-dwelling invertebrates, are sensitive to changes in sediment types. The placement of large quantities of sand can smother these benthic or invertebrate communities, which serve as vital food sources for many seabirds and fish species.

At What Point Do We Stop Mining Sand to Dump on Beaches Where It Erodes Out to Sea?

Plymouth’s Long Beach, a narrow, elongated barrier beach stretching about three miles northwest from Plymouth’s mainland, is regularly fortified against storm surges and erosion through taxpayer-funded “beach nourishment” projects conducted by the Town and state.

It is estimated that “More than $7 billion has been spent in the United States in recent decades on artificially rebuilding hundreds of miles of beach nationwide.” (Beiser, 2018).

To source sand and sediment, we must mine for it somewhere else, removing earth and leveling hills or mining below the surface of the earth. Globally and in Southeastern Massachusetts sand mining is a major business. It destroys the environment and threatens our drinking water. By removing layers of sand, soil, and sediment, we are removing parts of our natural water filtration system. Find our more here.

Most sand mining is illegal and unregulated. As we are attempting to correct the natural process of shifting sands and inevitable patterns of erosion on the beach, we are mining for sand in nearby locations to supplement.

Should we keep altering and reinforcing the beach ourselves, or should we let this natural barrier beach change naturally with the waves, tides, and storms?

Below: Sand blowing out to sea at Plymouth Beach. This is sand mined by Makepeace in Carver for the beach project. 3/23/2023. Residents reported sand blowing out to sea regularly during the project.

Other Coastal Towns: Duxbury, Provincetown, and Salisbury MA

Duxbury has active beach nourishment projects. In 2023-2024, the town transported 168,000 cubic yards of sand from Duxbury Construction to nourish Duxbury Beach, supplemented by an additional 120,000 tons from Duxbury Beach Park, totaling about $2 million worth of sand. A recent article acknowledges that much of this sand will erode away relatively quickly. At a recent public forum, there was discussion about sourcing sand and gravel from various local pits.

In Provincetown, ongoing beach nourishment projects have faced opposition from the shellfish industry, which argues that the sand projects are burying their oyster grants and smothering native grasses. The town is now exploring alternative methods. Read more about it here.

In 2024, coastal homeowners in Salisbury spent $565,000 to truck in 15,000 tons of sand to bolster dunes against erosion. Unfortunately, most of it washed out to sea within days. Despite these setbacks, residents are seeking state funding to reinforce Salisbury Beach’s defenses. Read more here. Republican state Senator Bruce Tarr plans to seek $1.5 million in state funding to help strengthen the dunes at Salisbury Beach.

Learn more:

Sand Wars in Cranberry Country: An investigation into the money, politics and corruption behind sand mining and its silent environmental crisis in Southeastern Massachusetts

Sand Wars Film: Short Version 5 min. Long Version 10 min.

Website: www.sandwarssoutheasternma.org

United Nations Environment Program here.

Alternatives to sand mining: here and here. We must acknowledge the intricate interplay between human activities and the health of our ecosystems. We can work toward more sustainable solutions to preserve our beaches and protect our natural environments for future generations.

Carver: Overview of AD Makepeace Co. Sand Trucking Hub: Read Custom Soils

May 23, 2024

Overview:

AD Makepeace’s Sand Distribution Hub

Read Custom Soils

Efforts are underway to shut the AD Makepeace Co. sand distribution hub at 46 Federal Road, Carver MA. Read more about our legal efforts here.

Group says Read violates local zoning laws

AD Makepeace Co. mines its lands to supply Read, its sales and distribution company

Below: Read Custom Soils, 46 Federal Road, Carver MA.

AD Makepeace owns and operates a regional sand and gravel distribution hub. Hundreds of trucks daily leave the site loaded with sand and gravel. In just a few hours in 2021, the public documented 258 sand and gravel trucks entering and exiting Read — that’s easily 500 trucks. Watch the video here.

Below: View of Read Custom Soils “soil blending” facility, 46 Federal Road, Carver MA

July 2023.

About AD Makepeace Co. & Read Custom Soils

AD Makepeace Cranberry Co., based in Wareham MA, claims to be the world’s largest cranberry grower and Massachusetts’ largest landowner. It owns about 12,000 acres of land in Southeastern Massachusetts. About 1,750 acres are used for cranberry agriculture. It derives most of its revenue from extracting and selling sand extracted from its lands. For decades, the cranberry industry has been a break even business at best. The Massachusetts Department of Agriculture calls cranberry farming a “beleaguered industry.” AD Makepeace mines for profits, not cranberry farming.

To evade local laws, cranberry companies claim their sand and gravel mining is “cranberry agriculture” and exempt from regulation. Find out more here.

Makepeace used to be a real cranberry company. In 2008, Makepeace deliberately pivoted from cranberry agriculture to real estate development and sand mining due to the poor economics of the cranberry industry. The cranberry industry is still not economically viable and survives on taxpayer subsidies and state grants. Read more in the Sand Wars Report, Part IV, “Economics of Sand” here.

The Massachusetts Department of Agriculture (MDAR) calls it ” beleaguered industry” and gives out millions in grants to sand mining companies who claim this is all cranberry agriculture.

Visit SandWars.org to see the groundbreaking Report: Sand Wars in Cranberry County: An investigation into the money, politics and corruption behind sand mining and its silent environmental crisis in Southeastern Massachusetts. Watch the video here.

AD Makepeace Co. profits from selling its “endless reserves” of sand

The core of Makepeace’s mining operations is about 2 square miles in the Carver-Wareham area on Federal Road. Watch the 2022 video for an overview of operations in the area.

Read operates on a portion of a large parcel of Makepeace land, about 536 acres that has a large cranberry bog on it. The Wankinko River runs through the bogs on the property. Because there is a bog on the large site, Makepeace claims the operation of Read and the mining is “cranberry agriculture” and exempt from local laws.

Makepeace strip mines its land around Read and brings the sand and gravel to Read to be distributed and sold. The map below shows AD Makepeace strip mine sites around Read within a 2 mile radius before in 2010 and as of 2023. These are just some of Makepeace’s sites. The trucks coming in and out of Read come from these sites and others in Southeastern Massachusetts.

This drone video shows Makepeace’s mining around Read. Between 2010 and 2024, Makepeace has strip mined up to 1,000 acres in the region for sand and gravel.

Below: 2010 Map showing AD Makepeace sand mines within 2 miles of Read. The areas are forested as of 2010.

Above: This is a Map of the same 2 mile radius in 2023. The strip mined areas are marked with a pin. Some are covered up with cranberry bogs.

Above: 59 Federal Road, Carver MA, May 2024. 120 acre sand mine underway since 2016.

Above: AD Makepeace sand mine. 59 Federal Road in Carver, May 2024.

AD Makepeace clears forest to access sand. In 2020, the Carver Earth Removal Committee gave AD Makepeace a permit to expand the mine by 85 acres to access $36 million in sand and gravel.

Above: 24 Federal Road in Carver MA, before mining. In 2019 the Carver Earth Removal Committee gave a permit to level the land by 40 feet and dig a pond.

Above: After AD Makepeace mining, July 2023. Over 24 acres of mining and dredging the Sole Source Aquifer for sand to supply Read Custom Soils. A former member of the Carver Earth Removal Committee, John Shurtleff, Jr. who operates a trucking company, was observed trucking sand from this site. Makepeace is mining at this site to supply sand to Read.

He voted to grant the Earth Removal Permit in 2019. See the Permit here. 24 Federal Road – Carver Earth Removal Permit to Makepeace signed by John Shurtleff and others. Read more about the involvement of Earth Removal Committee members in sand and gravel mining in Carver here.

Impact of Read’s truck traffic: dangerous and uncontrolled

For over a decade, the public has watched hundreds of trucks come in and out of Read daily. The volume of trucks is documented by videos and personal testimonials. Makepeace claims Read is a “manufacturing facility. A manufacturing facility does not have hundreds of tractor trailer trucks entering and leaving daily. Read’s trucks travel on interstate roads to deliver sand and gravel.

The operation causes dangerous traffic conditions on Federal Road and along the truck routes in Carver, Wareham and Plymouth. Federal Road is owned by the County and is a narrow rural road.

Here are some public documenting the excessive truck traffic from Read’s trucking hub:

This video shows 258 trucks coming in and out of Read in just a few hours in 2021.
This video shows 106 trucks in 14 minutes coming in and out of Read.
In 2021, a sand and gravel tractor trailer flipped over on Federal Road coming from Read. Listen to this police report of how the sand and gravel truck almost killed a resident and his granddaughter because it was going so fast before it flipped.
This video shows 14 trucks in 14 minutes coming from Read
Makepeace’s own truck logs show hundreds of trucks a day (logs available on request)
A court affidavit from a Wareham resident describes the hundreds of trucks a day leaving Read and Makepeace’s mines on Federal Road.

Below: Sand and gravel truck from Read flipped over on Federal Road, 2021.

The trucks coming to and from Read go one of two ways to get to the highways to deliver sand: going south on Federal Road through Wareham to Route 25 or west on Cranberry Road to Route 58.

These are narrow country roads. Traveling them presents a safety risk when tractor trailers of sand are speeding by. The truck routes go through Environmental Justice communities in Carver and Wareham.

Below: July 2, 2024: Read Custom Soils truck on Interstate 495 hauling sand and gravel from the Pine Barrens..

“This is agriculture?!” says a local resident.

The Carver Earth Removal Committee is allowing commercial mining around Read. There are 3 permits for mining pits in the area. Each permit allows 50 truck loads a day. Read more about Makepeace’s earth removal permits here.

In April, 2024, the Carver Earth Removal Committee approved expansion of the 120 acre mine at 59 Federal Road. Read more about this mine here.

This adds up to about 530,000 truck trips over 10 years — and that’s assuming Makepeace sticks to the law. There are even more trucks associated with Read. No one knows the actual number of trucks coming in and out of Read but it is alot!

Read more about the Carver Earth Removal Committee here. It is dominated by people who make money from sand and gravel mining or who buy sand from AD Makepeace.

All this trucking and sales of sand and gravel is just “cranberry agriculture”?

AD Makepeace claims that all this sand mining and Read’s trucking business is just “cranberry agriculture.” Watch here as the Makepeace CEO and President Jim Kane try to explain to the Carver Zoning Board of Appeals in September 2021 why after 20 years of mining at 46 Federal Road, Carver the cranberry bogs still are not built.

Impacts of sand mining: air pollution from carcinogenic silica sand dust

The sand being mined and shipped from Read is a silica sand. It causes cancer. There are no state laws to protect the public from air pollution from this sand.

The Town of Carver and the state Department of Environmental Protection ignore the public’s written, formal complaints about the emissions of sand from silica mines in Carver and the surrounding area.

In 2021, CLWC filed complaints with Carver about Makepeace and Read exposing the public to silica sand emissions. They ignored the requests. See one of the complaints here: 2021 April Dust Complaint Carver Board of Health-AirPollution

Impacts of AD Makepeace Co. sand mining on Environmental Justice Communities

Read is located in the heart of an Environmental Justice community. The Environmental Justice Community is shown in green on the map below.

An environmental justice community is one that is marginalized and overburdened with environmental pollution according to the state. Governor Healey has an office of Environmental Justice and Equity. The office is:

committed to ensuring a fair and equitable distribution of all environmental and energy benefits and burdens. We work with all agencies under the Secretary to ensure every policy and program is designed with equity at the center, ensuring all voices are heard and all voices are shaping the solutions. We are working hard to ensure there is meaningful engagement in all processes, resulting in more equitable public policies.

Impact of AD Makepeace sand mining on public and private drinking water

Makepeace’s sand and gravel mining harms the environment, including our drinking water. Read what the experts say here.

The sand and gravel that filter and protect underground drinking water wells are being removed. The Read trucking terminal is located over the Water Protection District in Carver, the Plymouth Carver Sole Source Aquifer, and near well protection zones for private and public wells. The trucking business has resulted in over 500,000 truckloads of sand and gravel being shipped off site.

Drinking water wells threatened says expert hydrologist. In 2022, CLWC went to court to try to stop Makepeace’s sand mining. World recognized hydrologist Scott W. Horsley testified that the mining operations at and around Read threaten drinking water. Figure 2 below is from Horsley’s court testimony. “Site 1” is the location of Read. “Site 2” is the 120 acre mining operation next to Cranberry Village. Read more here.

State subsidizes “cranberry companies” making millions from sand mining

According to the company’s CEO Jim Kane, Makepeace Cranberry Co. cannot survive without revenues from sand and gravel mining and sales. Kane states that Makepeace employs 60 independent trucking companies to transport sand and gravel to at least 10 asphalt and concrete manufacturers across New England, as well as other industrial and commercial customers, and some cranberry bogs. See Kane’s affidavit here: Affidavit of J. Kane

Below: MDAR website explains how taxpayer funds are used to subsidize companies like AD Makepeace whose primary source of revenue is sand mining.

Find statistics on the cranberry industry here. Since the early 2000s, Makepeace has earned its revenue primarily from sand mining rather than cranberry agriculture. They established Read Custom Soils on Federal Road in Carver to sell, ship, and distribute sand and gravel. Read is known as the largest supplier of sand and gravel in the Northeastern United States.

Listen to Kane’s plans for stripping land to put in solar here.

Other “cranberry” companies have also collected subsidies for sand and gravel mining. Read more about how North Weston Cranberry Co. in Carver MA collected state grants for a sand mining site.

Gov. Healey, local officials refuse to protect public and environment from sand mining

Local government corruption

CLWC’s campaign against sand mining targets local and state officials. It demands that they protect the environment from Makepeace’s sand mining activities. However, these officials refuse to do their job; they side with Makepeace and corrupt Carver officials, allowing sand mining to continue.

Read more about “Cranberry Country Corruption” in Southeastern Massachusetts and what some call the “sand mafia” here. Town officials give out permits for sand mining under false pretenses and in violation of the law. The state Inspector General is investigating corruption and sand mining in Southeastern Massachusetts. Read more in the Sand Wars Report.

State allows sand mining to evade environmental review

State agencies cover up for the sand mining industry and turn a blind eye to the environmental and public health impacts of these mines. The state has never required a full environmental impact study of the impact of Makepeace’s strip mining and trucking operations.

For example, in 2012 and in 2022, Makepeace’s development of its lands had to go through an environmental review. The state rubber stamped Read as an “agricultural project”. It never reviewed the environmental impacts of the sand mining operation. All reports are available upon request: environmentmentwatchsoutheasternma@gmail.com

The 2012 and 2022 environmental reviews were related to Read’s location in the “Tihonet Mixed Use Development” area on Makepeace’s vast land holdings. Find out more about Makepeace’s “TMUD” development here.

Above: In its 2012 environmental notice to the state Makepeace and Beals+Thomas stated the “Project Type” for Read Custom Soils operation on Federal Road was “Agricultural.” Does this look like an agricultural operation?

Makepeace reported to the state that Read would be located at 46 Federal Road in Carver to have easy access to the sand deposits to the east in Plymouth. This is the Plymouth – Frogfoot strip mine where Makepeace plans to extract 7 million cubic yards of sand and gravel. Falsely portraying the Plymouth mining operation as “agriculture” Makepeace calls the Plymouth strip mine the “Farm of the Future”.

Even though Makepeace and Beals + Thomas always claim the strip mine projects are “agriculture” not one of the sand and gravel sales projects Read brags about on its website is “agricultural”. Instead there are golf courses, athletic fields, and urban roads. The “soil blending” operation is not for cranberry bogs as Makepeace misrepresented to MEPA.

In its 2022 MEPA filing (FEIR) Makepeace’s consultant Beals+Thomas admitted the Read “manufacturing” facility does not exist:

“The soil blending facility was originally proposed to include an office and work space building and associated parking, a covered bin and pallet storage area with an adjacent concrete mixing pad area, a finished material storage building and associated covered areas for blending and storage, a dry-sand storage structure and associated concrete pad for drying sand and a scale. Although the soil blending facility is currently operational, the previously proposed full build-out, which included several buildings totaling 34,450 sf, as well as a 67,140 sf open canopy roof system, has not been undertaken.” MEPA report Page 1-13.

In 2022, Makepeace defended its “agriculture” narrative by claiming that its aggregate mining was a natural extension of cranberry growing. Learn more about the state’s decision not to mandate an environmental impact statement for sand mining here.

Read more about the Citizen Suit and the story behind Makepeace’s sand mining here.

Forests for life, forests for climate!

October 19, 2022

Taking action to save forests is a critical tool for addressing for fighting climate change

October 2022 study from Harvard Forest research center calls for doing more to prevent deforestation from industrial development

Industrial energy development such as large solar that cuts down forests undermines efforts to protect communities and biodiversity

Read the study here: “New England’s Climate Imperative: Our Forests as a Natural Climate Solution

Read what happens when we strip away forests, soils and vegetation for large industrial solar in Massachusetts:

Report by Partnership for Policy Integrity on proposed industrial solar on Pine Barrens in Southeastern Massachusetts.