Piezometer PZ2017/03, at the NE corner of Phase 1 and SE corner of Phase 2, is obviously unable to provide any meaningful information on how far to the west of this point the maximum groundwater levels would allow sufficient depth for mineral extraction, given water levels here have reached ground level.Clearly, therefore, there need to be further boreholes drilled at the redrawn eastern boundary of the extraction area – to fulfil Condition 30, ie. so that there are piezometers at "each corner of each working sub-phase".
Straitgate Action Group
In 1965, Straitgate Farm near Ottery St Mary in Devon was bought by ECC Quarries in the hope it would yield 20 million tonnes of sand & gravel. In 2001, Straitgate Action Group was formed to oppose the development and its potential harm to water supplies, ancient wetland habitats, protected species and much more. In 2023, Aggregate Industries – owned by Swiss giant Holcim – was finally granted permission to quarry just 1 million tonnes following a public inquiry. This blog records the story.
Monday 22 April 2024
Two months on – PZ2017/03 is STILL underwater
How do companies make themselves look green?
Remove air pollutantsReduce urban temperaturesReduce energy consumptionImprove biodiversityAttenuate rain waterReduce noiseetc, etc
The magical #livngwall of the Musee du quai Branly #Paris is a 200m long by 12m tall carpet of exotic #biodiversity which echoes the diversity of the artists who exhibit at the museum. #sustainability #architecture #sustainablearchitecture#greenwall #greenroofs #verticalgarden pic.twitter.com/xEF6vTeCle
— SUSTAINABILITYBAE (@sustbae) October 7, 2021
Tuesday 16 April 2024
Aggregate Industries resumes sustainability reporting
... go to Aggregate Industries’ Sustainability Reports and Policies page and what do we now find? Not the back catalogue of sustainability reports previously there, nor a shiny new one for 2019.What we find instead is parent LafargeHolcim’s 2019 report – while Aggregate Industries’ CO2 numbers are suddenly nowhere to be found.We can obviously help with the back catalogue of reports – 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2000 – plotting Aggregate Industries’ CO2 journey: a company now emitting in the region of 1.3 million tonnes of CO2 each year, more than 5 times the amount it did in 1999.But has Aggregate Industries really given up reporting carbon emissions?Is it because the numbers stubbornly refused to fall despite best efforts, or is it because the company stubbornly refused to embrace more sustainable ways?Aggregate Industries' application to quarry Straitgate Farm would of course indicate the latter.
Investments within our cement plant and efficiency improvements across all business areas have helped to reduce emissions compared to our 2020 baseline.
Our Hillhead Quarry, near Cullompton in Devon, has a new woodland after we teamed up with a group of local residents and members of local environmental group the Uffculme Green Team, to plant around 1,100 trees. Native species including English oak, hornbeam, hazel, blackthorn, hawthorn and holly were planted to provide more wildlife-friendly habitat in the area. The scheme will benefit all species, but in particular the hazel dormouse, an elusive and declining species whose numbers have dropped by 50 per cent since the millennium and for which the south-west is somewhat of a stronghold.
We will strive to make a positive impact on those communities where we live and operate.We also recognise that our operations can have a negative impact on some of our neighbouring communities and we are committed to proactively eliminating or minimising this impact, wherever possible. We already have stringent planning obligations in place at many of our sites, which limit operating hours, number of truck movements, noise levels and dust emissions. However, we are committed to going above and beyond legal compliance which we see as our minimum requirement. We already do this in many cases and proactively engage with our local communities through meetings, open days and school visits. We also recognise that we are able to contribute to our neighbouring communities by donating staff time for volunteering activities, materials to help with local projects as well as monetary contributions. We are not only committed to continuing this but we will build on these successes.
Wednesday 10 April 2024
Aggregate Industries’ Straitgate update for March
Aggregate Industries appoints a new sustainability director, again
Welcome to Kirstin McCarthy, who joins ExCo team as our Sustainability Director, an exciting role to help deliver our ambition of becoming a leading sustainable business. Find out more about her career: https://t.co/xC95ylJoe5 #Construction #PeopleMoves pic.twitter.com/wIy84wSUTw
— Aggregate Industries (@AggregateUK) June 7, 2021
This appointment is placing us in a unique position at the forefront of our industry and we must continue challenging ourselves to continuously reduce our carbon footprint through innovation, commitment and personal accountability.
I look forward to making my mark as the newest member of the executive committee and contributing to building a greener, smarter world for all.
My name is Kirstin McCarthy and I am the sustainability director at Aggregate Industries. I sit on the executive committee and I’m responsible for improving and accelerating our sustainability performance. I took a key interest in this application owing to some of the environmental concerns raised by the community. I have personally reviewed the environmental statement and feedback to date. My role here today is to provide assurance that this scheme will not have the detrimental effect that has been described by some of our objectors and most importantly I am here to listen to the concerns raised by our neighbours so that we can understand what work is required with the community to hopefully allay some of these fears.... etc etcStraitgate is sustainable because it’s about Devon making its contribution to the mineral supply in an environmentally responsible manner
Anna’s drive to really make a difference and proven ability to see the big picture will complement the work being done across the Group to achieve our targets in sustainability.
This is an exciting time to join Kier, a business I’ve long admired. With so much great work already underway, I’m looking forward to bringing my experience to the role and leading on the next steps of Kier’s sustainability journey for the Construction business.
Anna brings more than 20 years’ experience in sustainability within the construction industry and is responsible for accelerating the company’s journey to net-zero before 2050.
I’m happy to share that I'm starting a new position as Director of Sustainability at Sandals Resorts International!
Is there anybody left working at Aggregate Industries who has played a meaningful part in putting together the plans to quarry Straitgate Farm?
Commenting on her new role, Ms Baker said: ‘Aggregate Industries is a future-focused and innovative company with sustainability at the heart of its vision. I’m thrilled to be joining this business and look forward to working alongside the talented teams here to deliver an ambitious sustainability agenda that will add real value for our customers and communities.’
Wednesday 3 April 2024
What Straitgate and 5 other mineral appeal decisions tell us – says AI’s KC
More than 300 delegates, in person and on-line, attended the 2023 MPA/RTPI conference ‘Minerals Planning at a Crossroads’ on 15 June in London to hear from a range of expert speakers about the challenges facing minerals planning and how these may be met.
Richard Kimblin KC returns to the Minerals Planning Conference this year to provide the legal update. Richard will offer insight on legal issues arising from recent minerals planning appeals, issues which developers and decision-makers can help each other to avoid and a way to avoid lawyers.Clearly, those poor multinational mineral companies need as much help as possible.
"...we are satisfied that a condition requiring the use of hydrotreated vegetable oil as fuel would meet the tests in the Framework. On this basis the proposal would accord with Policy M20 of the DMP which requires development to contribute to the achievement of sustainable development, climate change resilience and mitigation, including through minimising the atmospheric release of greenhouse gases" Straitgate at §138
Angry protestors at Pontypridd quarry extension draw ‘heavy police presence’
WATCH: Heavy police presence as crowds turn out to protest at Welsh quarry pic.twitter.com/hAtInp1hOq
— WalesOnline 🏴 (@WalesOnline) March 27, 2024
The inspector in the Craig yr Hesg Quarry appeal accepted that the quarry caused stress and anxiety to locals, but did not accept their evidence that blasting at the quarry caused damage to their homes, because photos of cracks in walls were not supported by a structural survey. In Dorset, the inspector acknowledged that the quarry would cause noise disturbances to residents— after scrutinising a noise impact assessment provided by the appellant.Hard evidence is the key, but this can be an unaffordable option for residents and individuals. Heledd Fychan, Member of the Senedd Cymru for South Wales Central recognised this when the inspector’s decision was delivered: “Glyncoch is not an affluent area, and the planning inspectorate were critical of the fact that no hard evidence was presented to support their testimony, other than the images,” she said. “Collating such evidence is costly, meaning that communities will always struggle to have their voices and views heard as part of an appeal process without the means to do so.She continues: “Their testimony was powerful, and included pictures of cracks that have appeared in their homes which they believe have been caused by powerful blasts at the quarry, clouds of dust above the site, thick dust covering outside tables and cars, and evidence on how the lorries from the quarry are impacting their lives.“I find it disappointing that the views of local residents have been completely disregarded in relation to the quarry. Economic drivers and a need for the aggregate have trumped their views, meaning that they will have to continue to suffer the impact of the quarry. A quarry that they have had to live with for decades, and a quarry they were told would close when the last application prior to this was made to extend its life.”
Protestors have been gathering near the site of the quarry this week, with dozens joining for a second day of action on Tuesday, March 26. Residents say they are worried about the quarry's impact on their health from silica dust and the proximity to houses and public amenities like schools. They also believe it could disrupt wildlife and cause traffic issues, as well as impacting public rights of way.Heidelberg Materials UK has said it has addressed wildlife concerns and that "strict restrictons" on blasting and air quality monitoring were in place as well as other measures to mitigate any negative impact on residents.On Tuesday around 40 people gathered near the fence by the quarry site and there was a heavy police presence in the area. Dr Andrew Thomas, a university lecturer in Cardiff, was one of those protesting and said: “It’s fairly peaceful. There are about 40 or 50 of us, families, adults, children. About the same number of police and enforcement officers, about 30 of them. There is a bit of a standoff, but there is no pushing or shoving.Dr Thomas said the Welsh Government's decision to permit expansion for 29 years after RCT council rejected the plans was "scandalous", adding that it will leave the site within touching distance of residents' gardens in Glyncoch."It’s been contained behind the mountain but the big controversy here is that this new land was used as a public right of way. So you have a working class community which is about 2,000 people who are literally 100 metres from the site, the legal distance from a quarry in the UK. There is a primary school which is 200m away too."This is encroaching into their back garden. This is totally NIMBY because it is literally in their back garden. It is literally two rugby pitches away."They’re impacted by blasting, which is felt right into their properties at least once a week. They’re also impacted by lorries going to and fro - it is a road which is only really fit for residential driving, not lorries. Their worry is how they are going to move the lorries into and from the new site. It’s a lot of unknowns and as soon as you have that you impact mental health."I think once the dust starts blowing over and they are exposed to silica particles in their lungs… They’ve also lost a green space they were very sentimental about, their children’s upbringing playing in the woods is gone."It blocks off access to parts of the countryside and it hasn’t been made clear how public rights of way will be protected. Nothing has been communicated."I cannot believe this has been signed because it goes against everything the Welsh Government claims to support. It’s so sad. And there is no reason for it to have been done it this way. You can’t stop the planning but you can slow them down doing what they want to do. We don’t believe they care."
A former nurse who has lived virtually all her life in the shadow of a quarry has provided eloquent testimony to the health fears it provokes in her community ✍️ @ShiptonMartin https://t.co/LLIpktQZtw
— Nation.Cymru (@NationCymru) March 28, 2024
Judge quashes inspector’s green belt quarry refusal over biodiversity net gain ‘error’
Following a High Court challenge to our Inspector’s decision on this appeal dated 5th May 2023, the Court has ordered that the appeal be re-determined. This does not necessarily mean that the Inspector will reach a different overall decision.
Judge quashes inspector’s green belt quarry refusal over biodiversity net gain 'error'https://t.co/N6pbOmHAVD pic.twitter.com/nzKawLcbtK
— Planning Magazine (@PlanningMag) November 20, 2023
MP urges Aggregate Industries to change Leighton Buzzard quarry plans
Applications submitted to extend a quarry despite plans to turn it into a waterside park https://t.co/U1BaghjI3E pic.twitter.com/NCV2gx8irk
— LB Observer (@LBOnews) March 19, 2024
We have applied to extend our planning terms to enable an additional 3.3 million tonnes of specialist sands to be extracted from land south of Grovebury Quarry which we estimate would take between nine and 14 years, starting from July 2026 - with a further six years to complete full restoration.
I very much understand the concerns of Billington residents and have asked Aggregate Industries to mitigate their plans by moving the works further away from peoples homes. I am also pressing for the earliest possible restoration of the site for leisure and recreational use for Leighton Buzzard residents as well.
UK company directors may be personally liable for climate impacts, say lawyers
UK company directors may be liable for climate impacts, say lawyers #ClimateHarm#PierceTheCorporateVeil https://t.co/L5EF4sYzQQ
— @ElaineJohnson (@Elaine_EnvLaw) March 16, 2024
A legal opinion published this week found that board directors had duties to consider how their business affected and depended on nature. These included climate-related risks as well as wider risks to biodiversity, soils and water.The analysis said directors of UK firms faced serious personal consequences for breaching these duties, potentially including claims for damages or compensation by their shareholders.
Calls for greater use of recycled sand ‘to help preserve threatened natural resource’
The Sheehan Group have appealed for the construction industry to further embrace recycled sand – to help preserve the threatened natural resource - https://t.co/9gUwaEdm7s#WasteManagement #Waste #Recycling pic.twitter.com/ogp3IV0zWZ
— Access Waste Management (@access_waste) March 20, 2024
Wednesday 27 March 2024
Gloucestershire CC ordered to pay £180k after losing quarry appeal
...the proposals which also included a concrete batching plant, the creation of clean water ponds, silt ponds and stock piles at the 160-acre site were met with strong opposition from hundreds of residents. A total of 257 people objected, raising concerns over noise, the health and environmental impact of dust generated at the site and the impact it would have on nearby businesses such as Hilton Puckrup Hall Hotel. Some 72 people wrote in support.
• the effect of the proposal on the local economy with regard to dust and noise; and• whether the proposal is contrary to the Council’s declared climate emergency and the national planning policy objectives for transitioning to a low carbon future.
The PPG makes it clear that a local planning authority is at risk of an award of costs if it fails to produce evidence to substantiate each reason for refusal on appeal and/or makes vague, generalised or inaccurate assertions about a proposal’s impact which are unsupported by any objective analysis. Other examples of unreasonable behaviour include preventing or delaying development which should clearly be permitted having regard to its accordance with the development plan, national policy and any other material considerations, and refusing planning permission on a planning ground capable of being dealt with by conditions, where it is concluded that suitable conditions would enable the proposed development to go ahead.
And concluded:
In the planning judgement, it appears to me that having regard to the provisions of the development plan, national planning policy and other relevant considerations, the proposed development should not have reasonably been refused. The refusal of permission therefore constitutes unreasonable behaviour contrary to the guidance in the PPG and the applicant has been faced with the unnecessary expense of addressing these matters.
Council officers revealed yesterday there was no budget for a loss of this kind and the payment would result in an overspend in the budget.But councillors on the planning committee said they had "no regrets" and would make the same decision again to try and protect residents and the planet...Cllr Bernard Fisher (LD, St Paul's and Swindon) said: "It was a majority decision of the committee and that is our prerogative. "If you want to do away with democracy you can have a rubber stamp to go along with all officers recommendations. Like us, they are human and they get it wrong. "People who can afford the most expensive lawyers often win. But not pursuing a case because you can't afford to pay the costs is not the way we should operate. "The people of that area will have to live with this decision. I have no regrets."Cllr Susan Williams (C, Bisley and Painswick) said: "I totally agree. I voted against it because I felt it was morally right for me to make that decision. "Without us standing up there won't be change in the future. It needs to start at county level. I stand by my decision."
i) the effect of the development on water supplies and human health;ii) its effect on drainage and flood risk;iii) its effect on heritage assets;iv) its effect on trees and hedgerows;v) its effect on highway safety; andvi) its effect on biodiversity.vii) The sustainability of transporting sand and gravel by road from Straitgate Farm to Hillhead Quarry.
Quarry archeological investigations cost Forterra £500k
v. stræt , geat . The farm lies by the Roman road to Exeter. For the geat , v. supra 603 n.
Including the Long Range site and Areas 2 and 6 at Straitgate it is apparent that this Iron Age open settlement extends over an area of potentially c. 10 hectares... based on the geophysics and trench results, around 12-15 further roundhouses in total might be anticipated... Three pieces of Romano-British period tile from overlying deposits and two holed slates from the large ditch in Trenches 22 and 56 may indicate a ‘Romanised’ building is present in the vicinity... new evidence for Romano-British settlement was identified, dated from the artefacts recovered to the 2nd to 3rd centuries AD, including a substantial linear ditch of 30m length, c. 5m width and over 2.2m depth.
No development shall take place until a written Archaeological Scheme of Investigation has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Mineral Planning Authority and implementation of a programme of archaeological work has been secured. The development shall be carried out at all times in accordance with the approved scheme.
was a 10-month excavation of a settlement at the site that was destroyed by fire, causing it to collapse into a river channel, preserving the contents in situ.
decaying timbers were discovered protruding from the southern face of the quarry pit at Must Farm. Subsequent investigations in 2004 and 2006 dated the timbers to the Bronze Age and identified them as a succession of large structures spanning an ancient watercourse.
archaeologists retrieved almost 200 wooden artefacts, more than 150 fibre and textile items, 128 pottery vessels and more than 90 pieces of metalwork. More than 18,000 pieces of structural wood were recorded.
Detailed monographs on thousands of artefacts pulled from the settlement at Must Farm reveals the surprisingly sophisticated domestic lives of Bronze Age Fen people, from home interiors to recipes, clothing, kitchenware and pets
9.1 It is recommended that the applicants be advised that the proposed revised rewetting scheme submitted in May 2013 is considered to be contrary to the provisions of Policy CS36 in that the revised scheme of preservation in situ is not considered suitable or appropriate in the circumstances and refused.9.2 It is further recommended that Hanson be advised that they should, within the next three months submit a further revised scheme of archaeological mitigation being a focused strategy to retrieve and record the vulnerable remains of the Late Bronze Age Timber Platform Site at the edge of Old Must Pit, in order to safeguard the remains from further damage or decay.
EA starts final 6-week public consultation on Hemerdon processing plant
The receipt and acceptance of the draft permit for the MPF has been a positive milestone for the Company. It represents a significant step in securing the further funding required for the Project, and delivering our key objective of recommencing operations at the Hemerdon mine and providing an ethical and sustainable domestic supply of critical minerals.
We are seeking your comments on the proposed decision for a new bespoke application for an environmental permit from Drakelands Restoration Limited for Hemerdon Mine Tungsten West Ltd Plympton PL7 5BWWe can take account of* Relevant environmental regulatory requirements and technical standards.* Information on local population and sensitive sites.* Comments on whether the right process is being used for the activity, for example whether the technology is the right one.* The shape and use of the land around the site in terms of its potential impact, whether that impact is acceptable and what pollution control or abatement may be required.* The impact of noise and odour from traffic on site.* Permit conditions by providing information that we have not been made aware of in the application, or by correcting incorrect information in the application (e.g. monitoring and techniques to control pollution).
Wednesday 20 March 2024
Run-off problems at Venn Ottery. Would AI’s legacy at Straitgate be the same?
Watercourses originating from Straitgate pass through four communities downstream; communities that are prone to flooding. Any quarrying at Straitgate Farm must not make the situation worse, either during work or afterwards. DCC has requested that any plans make the situation better. How this could be so, with the loss of millions of gallons of groundwater storage capacity in the unsaturated layer of sand and gravel on top of the hill above these communities, remains to be seen.
No development hereby permitted shall commence until a Construction and Environmental Management Plan... has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Mineral Planning Authority. The Plan shall include... (d) details of the management of surface water during the construction and soil stripping phases
(b) Updated infiltration tests shall be carried out using an infiltrometer and shall be undertaken in strict accordance with BRE Digest 365 Soakaway Design (2016) and must be undertaken within the Budleigh Salterton Pebble Beds. A representative number of tests shall be conducted in order to provide adequate coverage of the site, with particular focus placed on the locations and depths of potential infiltration devices;
No water body shall be created within the site other than the approved weigh bridge lagoon.
Cllr Cole reported that the Quarry Manager was taking further remedial action to create a better settlement ponding system and other works to alleviate the problem of the Neighboring fields being washed out. A new pipe was to be placed under Green Lane where it had washed out.
Significant amount of run off was present in the waterbodies at the time of the visit.
6.22 It is accepted that there have been a few occasions when surface water has discharged from the site, but in these instances the operator has acted quickly to remedy the situation and it is considered that the final restoration of the site (which includes water storage features) will adequately deal with any surface water issues.
The increased run-off from the (now closed) Venn Ottery Quarry brought a river of water along the track from the Otterdene area to Venn Ottery green, where it crossed along 2 routes to join the stream that runs alongside the green and through the back gardens of 1-5 Barton Mews.
From about 2012 onwards residents in the houses on west side of Venn Ottery green have noticed an increase in the volume of water running along the unmetalled road and across the green. Within a couple of years of starting quarrying in 2010, water from the quarry site caused the track that runs westeast from the Otterdene (Happy Valley) area towards Venn Ottery to become impassable, and the field nearby to (behind Dartwood, Brookdell) to be waterlogged. Similarly, ’Puddle Lane’ became even more muddy. When requested by the local community, Aggregate Industries provided quantities of pebbles to improve the drainage and raise the level of the track to some extent.
The quarrying ceased and in 2017-18 the land was ‘restored’. An area on the northeast was formed into an attenuation lake to hold back excess water run-off. The lake is not very large so cannot always retain all the water, which then runs downhill and into VO.
The attenuation pond at the eastern corner of the closed quarry site is undersized and has no controls on overflow. Extension of the pond and the installation of a sluice to control the outflow could greatly reduce the speed at which water flows.
We shall be putting back a lot more than we're taking away.
Saturday 16 March 2024
Wettest 18 months on record – and still no groundwater monitoring at Straitgate
Friday 15 March 2024
Where would we be without geologists?
Extraction of up to 1.5 million tonnes of as raised sand and gravel, restoration to agricultural land together with temporary change of use of a residential dwelling to a quarry office/welfare facility
At [nearby] Marshbroadmoor, the original planning application promised 1.1 million tonnes, but, due to 'geological faulting', no more than 200,000 tonnes ever came out.
...no aggregates operator would consider (for example) trying to develop a sand and gravel deposit of less than one million tonnes. We have clients who have sites which have been turned down on this basis. The planning and development costs are considered too great on a per tonne basis.
There is a geologist, geophysicist, and a petroleum engineer in a room with their boss. The boss asks, "What’s 2 times 2?" The geologist thinks for a while says "well it’s probably more than 3 and less than 5". The geophysicist punches it into his calculator and answers that it’s 3.999999. The petroleum engineer gets up, locks the door, pulls the curtains, unplugs the phone and says, "What do you want it to be?"
The selected candidate will be instrumental in exploring, evaluating, and advising on the geologic aspects crucial to our extraction and production processes. This is a great opportunity for the new postholder to make their stamp within a team which has recently been heavily invested with technology.
Hedgerows
🌳 💦Hedgerows planted on steep contours & high densities can reduce runoff rates up to 50%, preventing flooding &improving the water quality of our rivers & streams. This is by improving hydrological soil processes: increasing percolation, filtration & evapotranspiration 🌳 💦 pic.twitter.com/85J6DZIO9g
— Hedgelink (@Hedgelink_UK) March 4, 2024
Devon quarry hosts UK’s first driverless dump truck
Even over the last 10 years there has been a dramatic fall in employee numbers in sand and gravel, with the UK Minerals Yearbook reporting over 8000 employees in 2001, but under 3000 in 2010. The HSE says the "industry has difficulty attracting and recruiting staff" and "anecdotal evidence suggests an ageing workforce".
The development of autonomous driving capability opens the door to a range of operational efficiency, safety, environmental, and employee benefits to underpin the sector going forward.
We envisage many benefits from having access to this sector-first autonomous ADT solution. The minerals and aggregates sector must embrace technology as a way of continually delivering improvements across our daily operations and cost base.