PERMITTING – FEBRUARY 2016


New Enterprise Seeks Quarry Expansion

Concerned over potential impact to the town water supply, the Kutztown, Pa., borough council has directed its engineers to analyze a proposed expansion of the Kutztown Quarry in Maxatawny Township owned by Eastern Industries, a division of New Enterprise Stone & Lime Co.

According to the Reading Eagle, the company has applied to the state Department of Environmental Protection for a permit to increase water discharge from the quarry into the Saucony Creek.
Council adopted a measure to have SSM Group Inc. of Wyomissing, Pa., meet with the company and perform a technical analysis of the impact of the plans on the borough’s wells.

In its application to DEP, the company requests to renew and revise existing permits regulating the amount of water pumped from the quarry into Saucony Creek. If granted, the revised permits would allow the company to increase water discharge to 12,000 gal. per minute from 5,000 gal. per minute, a 140 percent increase.


Texas Council Begins Annexation Of Possible Quarry Site

According to the Hill Country Community Journal, Kerrville, Texas, Mayor Jack Pratt took possible annexation of a proposed rock quarry site to council. After a lengthy discussion in a nearly four-hour meeting, council voted 5-0 to begin annexation of the property so as to have zoning control over it.

He said his concerns are the health, safety and welfare of the city, and that they have a duty to protect property values of citizens. He also said city infrastructure is in place east to Mooney. Pratt cited emissions, dust, water quality, the river and groundwater as concerns.

The land is the site of a proposed Martin Marietta Corp. rock quarry. The mayor noted impacts on traffic safety, schools and ball parks, and also stated that he wanted to be proactive, not reactive.


Tennessee County Trying to Restrict Quarries

According to Nashville Public Radio, the Metro Council moved a step closer to restricting quarries and concrete plants across Davidson County. But it appears that a proposed quarry in Old Hickory, Tenn., that triggered concerns could be exempt from the limitation.

After waiting months to speak out, dozens of residents packed a council meeting to decry the quarry that’s trying to open near their homes, a popular public beach and an aging Army Corps of Engineers dam.

The council is considering a new buffer rule that would keep quarries away from homes and parks. Yet the specific Old Hickory project that drew the crowd already has its Metro permits.

The proposal has faced pushback from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), which oversees the state’s role in permitting. The TDEC demanded more thorough environmental impact documents after a site visit and threatened to revoke a preliminary permit.


Vulcan Pursues Environmental Approval

Vulcan Materials’ Black Point Quarry, Novia Scotia, Canada, is seeking environmental approval for its operation, according to the Guysborough Journal.

Black Point Aggregates Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Vulcan Materials, proposes the construction, operation, decommissioning, and abandonment of a granite quarry at Black Point, and the construction and operation of a 200-m long marine terminal and load-out facility, adjacent to the quarry, in Chedabucto Bay.

Construction is anticipated to commence in 2018. The quarry is expected to have a production capacity of up to 7.5 million tons of granite per year, over a mine life of approximately 50 years.

The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency has invited the public to comment on its draft Environmental Assessment Report that outlines the agency’s conclusions and recommendations regarding the potential environmental effects of the project, proposed mitigation measures, the significance of any remaining adverse environmental effects, and the follow-up program.

Following this final comment period, the Environmental Assessment Report will be finalized and the federal minister will issue an environmental assessment decision statement indicating whether the project is likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects, and identifying the conditions that the proponent must meet with respect to mitigation and follow-up requirements in the event that the project is permitted to proceed.

A decision is expected by the end of April. Then there’s a two-year period before Vulcan expects to break ground, during which time various industrial permits need to be secured and the company will make its final investment decision.

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