After a lengthy presentation by both Bill Cobb and Alfonso Nevarez, counsel for Maverick County in reference to the fact that no matter what requirements they had met or how many factors they may have taken into consideration prior to the application for said permit, the Flood Plain Administrator would still deny said permit.
The plaintiff in this case called Paul Padilla, the engineer who was asked to review the original application, to the witness stand to explain the basis for his recommendations on the impending issue all of which he said were beneficial to the purpose of containing any and all water used in the mining process as well as confirming that it would also deter and prevent flooding when the mine becomes operational.
What he was not able to answer with the same expertise was what exactly would be in the runoff in terms of contaminants which drew a rise from those gathered as he was not able to answer those questions.
"Everything's positive. The senator is against and has publicly been against the coal mine. Judge Cynthia Muñiz just denied the request from Dos Republicas, so everyting looks good at this point," said Hellen Martinez for Senator Carlos Uresti. She also added that in no way did she think that this was the end of this situation.
"Definitely not, there are still more court proceedings that need to be addressed, but for now it's definitely a win."
"We're elated. We're very happy because justice was done. The judge made the decision following all the rules that were in the Flood Plain Administration Ordinance and Mr. Nevarez, our representative and lawyer for the county did an outstanding job," said Martha Baxter of the Maverick County Environmental Association.
"They presented their evidence, we presented ours. We felt all along that it wasn't an abuse of discretion for the judge to rule the way he did. We're fortunate that the judge saw that today. I'm not under any illusions that the fight's not going to continue," stated Nevarez. When asked if he felt this was the end of Dos Republicas' bid to continue to pursue said permit, he added, "I don't believe it to be. I'd be very, very, very surprised, but I'm fortified with the support that the public has for this issue. Obviously the judge is vested in this. It speaks volumes of Judge Saucedo who has stood firm. He's a man of conviction, a man of principle. I've heard that in his ruling, and not so much in his ruling, but he showed that in the fact that he's here."