The Cochrane-Fountain City School District and Glacier Sands failed to reach a compromise agreement in advance of Wednesday's zoning hearing on a mining permit that intends to route sand trucks on state highways 88 and 35.
    
The Buffalo County Zoning Board of Adjustment is conducting its 3rd hearing on a 7 Sands, LLC, mining permit at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday in the American Legion Hall at Gilmanton.

A partnership of seven landowners in the Buffalo County town of Montana seeks conditional-use zoning permits to mine sand from some 450 acres of land.

The board of adjustment tabled the 7 Sands permit in August citing unresolved truck route conflicts and road agreements.

The C-FC School Board after a closed session meeting Saturday morning recommended the board of adjustment deny all Glacier Sands projects that would run trucks on roads by the school.

The 7-member school board said without a traffic safety plan it did not feel assured of student driver and bus safety on routes used by sand truckers.

But the district also wants Glacier Sands to legally sign off on renewing its pursuit of sand drying and loading facilities for a proposed railway spur near the school.

The school board's message to the board of adjustment said Buffalo County should extend its moratorium on mining permits and create a plan for having school districts involved in setting up sand truck routes.