Aggregates Manager Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/531447
OPERATIONS ILLUSTRATED OUR EXPERTS Rethinking Reclamation July 2015 Tom Phelps is currently reclamation manager for RCP Block & Brick. He previously served as sand plant man- ager for the family-owned company. Phelps has been involved in the aggregates industry for nearly 40 years and has worked at the cur- rent pit since 1992. Jenna Emerson is the legislative and public affairs manager, Florida/Carolinas, for Cemex USA. She studied interpersonal and organi- zational communications at Florida State University and the University of Central Florida. Emerson is a member of the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association's Young Leader Council and serves on the Wildlife Habitat Council's wetlands committee. Lehigh Hanson's Fairmount Quarry in Westchester, Ill., used non-traditional farming equipment to plant native seeds selected for their vigor and ability to grown in low-nutrient soils, they were able to quickly establish the necessary ground cover. The operation won the Illinois Department of Natural Resources' 2014 Illinois Mined Land Reclamation Award, the Non- coal Reclamation Award from the National Association of State Land Reclamationists, and an Honorable Mention for the Kenes C. Bowling National Mine Rec- lamation Award from the Interstate Mining Compact Commission. Rogers Group Inc.'s former Louisville Crushed Stone operation, in Louisville, Ky., was mined until the 1970s, when its reserves were depleted. The surface property is now home to a K-Mart, the Louisville Zoo, and several industrial-use properties, but the under- ground project is truly the star. One portion of the cavern is leased as manufacturing and commercial warehousing. There, Warner Brothers stores old fi lm archives. Another portion is an entertainment center that features the nation's largest underground zipline facility, a ropes course, bike trails, a Christmas lights show, and event and meeting space for up to 100. Involve future leaders 2 3 Go beyond requirements 5 Grow institutional knowledge 6 Don't overlook entertainment options Gary O'Toole is the director of environmental services for Lehigh Hanson, Inc. He has a bachelor of science degree in environmental biology from Eastern Illinois University. He began his career with Material Services Corp. and has more than 35 years of experience. He has served on NSSGA's environmental committee and sustainability task force. He is also a past chair of the Illinois Associa- tion of Aggregates Producers environmental committee. Reclamation kicked off in a big way with Cemex's Eng- strom Lake Project at its 474 Sand Mine in Clermont, Fla., when more than 500 elementary students spent a week there. Students planted 2,500 trees to help restore and enhance a mined and reclaimed upland. Once plantings were complete, the operation added an outdoor learning center and project learning area that includes 20 acres divided into four habitat areas. The operation hosts fi eld trips throughout the school year, with nearly 3,000 students visiting the site each year. While the original mining permit for Vulcan Materials Co.'s River Rock operation in Fresno, Calif., allowed it to mine all of Rank Island, it recognized that the site contains one of the last remaining, old growth stands of native mixed riparian forest along that section of the San Joaquin River. It voluntarily revised its mining and reclamation plan to preserve undisturbed portions of the property. A native plant nursery was developed on the site for the natural plants used for reclamation. The site received the Excellence in Reclamation award from the California Department of Conservation.