Aggregates Manager Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/777939
by Therese Dunphy | Editor-in-Chief tdunphy@randallreilly.com 8 AGGREGATES MANAGER / February 2017 To keep up to date with news from the United States and Canada, visit www.AggMan.com for daily updates. STATE & PROVINCE NEWS CALIFORNIA The USDA Forest Service and County of San Bernardino released for review a joint California Environmental Quality Act and National Environmental Policy Act Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environ- mental Impact Statement for Mitsubishi Cement Corp.'s South Quarry Project. According to Victor Valley News, Mitsubishi plans to develop a new limestone quarry to the south of its existing operation in Lucerne Valley on the north slope of the San Bernardino Mountains. The proj- ect area includes 153.6 acres, with a 128-acre quarry. ILLINOIS The Illinois Association of Aggregate Producers' Public Information and Education Committee will host its annual Illinois Teacher Workshop: Rock, Minerals & Mining in Today's Society on July 17-19. According to the association, teachers in grades K-12 and junior college will be given the opportunity to refresh their knowledge of earth science and learn about the importance of rocks, minerals, and mining in everyday life. The workshop will include mine tours, informational materials, and hands-on activities. Anyone interested in sponsoring a teacher to attend the workshop should visit the website at www. iaap-aggregates.org/workshop.htm. ARIZONA According to the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association, Cal- Portland hosted Rep. Martha McSally at its cement plant and Twin Peaks aggregate plant in Rillito in late November. "Having our mem- bers of Congress tour our operations shows them the importance of quarries and aggregates to our infrastructure and construction industries," Steven Regis, CalPortland's senior vice president of cor- porate services, said in a press release. "We were able to have good conversations about the overwhelming number of regulations facing our industry and the need to revitalize the economy, both nation- wide and here in Arizona." Specifically, they addressed OSHA's crys- talline silica rule, air quality, and safety, among other issues. CALIFORNIA A citizens group, the Point San Pedro Road Coalition, is bat- tling Marin County, which unanimously approved San Rafael Rock Quarry's request to import and recycle asphalt in 2013. The group took the county to court over its decision, the Marin Independent Journal reports. Marin Superior Court Judge Paul Kaakenson ruled against the county and ordered the quarry to stop recycling asphalt. Both the county and the quarry are appealing the ruling to the 1st District Court of Appeals. Aimi Dutra, spokesman for the quarry, told the newspaper that it can no longer receive RAP, which is an environmentally sound practice and requested by many Cal- trans and municipality projects. KANSAS A county-owned quarry in Neosho County was nearly shut down following a Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) inspection. According to The Chanute Tribune, the operation was cited for failure to have a guard rail on a cattle crossing going onto the property. The inspector told officials to install guard rails by the end of the following Thursday and arrived to inspect it at 8:30 a.m. The county road and bridge supervisor told county counselors that the county has used that entrance for 25 years, and suggested that coun- selors "should nicely complain" when one suggested they challenge the citation. NORTH CAROLINA Elmwood Strong, a citizens group, is working to stop a future quarry from being opened in Elmwood. The Statesville Record & Landmark reports that the group has made multiple requests of the Iredell County Planning Board. It first requested for a "moratorium on all polluting industries." When that request failed, it asked for setbacks of 1,500 feet from property lines for quarries. The planning board instead opted for setbacks ranging from 50 feet for areas such as the extraction area, pit, office building, and parking to 300 feet from any blasting, crushing, or processing sites. Maymead, a Tennessee-based construction materials company, recently purchased a property there for $2.246 million. The property is the site of a former quarry, but is currently zoned for agricultural use. MICHIGAN The Huron County Planning Commission is waiting for further informa- tion from Wallace Stone Co. regarding its request to permit additional property. According to the Huron Daily Tribune, public comments during the commission's most recent meeting regarded specifics such as setbacks and concerns about blasting. The operator is seeking 85 additional acres to be permitted, but the acreage is split among three different townships. Eric Gardy, operations manager of the quarry, told the newspaper that the additional acreage would extend the life of the property from five years to 20-25 years. MARYLAND While Aggregate Industries' Travilah Quarry in Rockville still has an estimated 60 years of reserves, officials there are eying a potential reclamation use as water storage for the D.C., Maryland, and Virginia markets. WTOP reports that the Washington Aqueduct would only have one to two days of water storage if the Potomac River ever became unavailable or undrinkable. The quarry site could currently hold about a 14-day supply. Tests at the site show that there are no naturally occurring minerals that would make water stored there unsafe for consumption. "All quarries have a finite life span," Richard Freedman, director of land and environment for Aggregate Industries' Mid-Atlantic region, told the news outlet. "It's a long way away, but we're always interested in the conscientious repurposing of our property. I don't know if it will end up being a reservoir, but that's a possibility the company would explore and be receptive to."