Aggregates Manager Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/718149
by Therese Dunphy | Editor-in-Chief tdunphy@randallreilly.com 8 AGGREGATES MANAGER / September 2016 To keep up to date with news from the United States and Canada, visit www.AggMan.com for daily updates. STATE & PROVINCE NEWS CONNECTICUT Tilcon encountered a bump in the road as it plans to relocate its quarry in New Britain. The Bristol Press reports that the Council on Environmental Quality voted to recommend that the Water Planning Council rescind its vote to approve Lenard Engineering, Inc. to conduct an environmental study on its proposed move. Some local officials were concerned that a "multi-disciplinary consulting engineering firm" did not possess the correct qualifications to perform the study. Instead, the group is recommending that the Water Planning Council send out a new Request for Pro- posals to find a more suitable group. Tilcon plans to relocate its operation onto land belonging to the New Britain Water Department and would build a treed buffer zone around the site prior to mining. After it completes mining, the site would become a reservoir. The new site falls under the state's Aquifer Protection Area plan, so legis- lators would need to approve an exemption to allow mining. NEW JERSEY A 20-year-old man died in an abandoned quarry, Lehigh Valley Live reports. The man, Andrew J. Grennan, was swimming with friends in the Seven Slopes Quarry when he decided to jump off a small ledge. He then attempted to swim to the other side, but never surfaced. His body was recovered from approxi- mately 25 feet under water. The acting police chief told the newspaper that Grennan was believed to have landed on a ledge. NEW JERSEY CALIFORNIA MASSACHUSETTS The Watchung Borough Council approved an ordinance that would extend the "QU" or quarry zone and make the corre- sponding changes in its land development ordinance. Accord- ing to the Echoes-Sentinel, the council has been working on the ordinance with Weldon Materials Inc. since 2014. The ef- fort came about due to a conflict between the zoning map and the land ordinance. Portions of Weldon's property were zoned residential, and the operator wanted to extend the quarry zone along that property. After in-depth discussions about set- backs, the planning board was able to amend its master plan to meet the operator's needs, while the operator will work with the buffer zones established by the council. "I felt like when we were having discussions, we thought we were trying to do what was good for the town, and I think the planning board also thought they were trying to do the same for the borough and the business," Bob Weldon said at the council meeting. "I am proud to have been working with all of you on this and happy to continue working with you in the future." In a recent meeting of the Madera County Planning Commission, the group voted 3-2 to approve Vulcan Material Co.'s Austin Quarry. According to the Sierra Star, the vote came during the early hours of the morning. The commission members who voted against the proposal were appointed by board of super- visor members who live near the future operation. Vulcan had submitted an 11,000-page Final Environmental Impact Report for the project. Proponents included hydrology experts, Vulcan employees, a representative from the Madera Unified School District, and a member of the Madera County Economic Develop- ment Commission. The company agreed to fund construction of lanes on highways around the site, as well as purchase carbon credits to offset greenhouse gas emissions. Aggregate Industries won a partial victory in its effort to expand operating hours and conditions at a quarry. According to the Taunton Daily Gazette, the Taunton City Council renewed its earth removal permit, but denied a request to expand hauling hours. The newspaper reports that Aggregate Industries wanted to extend crushing hours from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Instead, council approved an additional half-day on Saturdays. The operator also asked for 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. hours for haulage, but that request was denied. NEW YORK Frontier Stone won a decision on its proposed 215-acre op- eration but continues to face citizen opposition as it seeks to develop its Shelby site. The Daily News reports that an administrative law judge for the Department of Environmen- tal Conservation ruled "no issue exists for adjudication and no supplementation of the DEIS is required, with respect to consideration and evaluation of alternatives." While that re- sponse was met with satisfaction from the operator, mem- bers of the Citizens for Shelby Preservation vow to "make sure the Shelby Town Board does what is best for the town and rejects the mining overlay district. The town is going to be charged with doing the job that the SEQR review was designed to do, but failed miserably." NEW YORK In August, Lafarge North America held an open house at its quarry in Lockport. According to The Buffalo News, visitors were to be taken by bus to a viewing ar- ea to observe a blast, as well as operating equipment. Lafarge Project Manager Perry Galdenzi told the news- paper that it was the first open house Lafarge has held in about 10 years. The site, which produces between 1.5 million and 2 million tons of aggregate per year, has about two years of reserves remaining. Lafarge is seeking a permit to open a new site, but has to demon- strate that blasting wouldn't harm the city's drinking water supply. It also has to create a $500,000 repair fund to reimburse any blasting-related damage to the water pipeline and agree to pay the city $50,000 to replace the valve that connects the city's water system to the county pipeline. The new quarry would have 50 years of estimated reserves.