Quarry protest at Oxford University

Last week, Warwickshire villagers protested outside St John’s College, following a decision to allow 220 acres of highest grade agricultural land that it owns to be used as a sand and gravel quarry. The protest was covered by two of Oxford University's student newspapers Cherwell and The Oxford Student:

Protesters brandished signs reading "Quarry dust can kill," "Land not sand" and "Quash the quarry" as they stood outside the porters lodge of St John’s College. Primary school children from the area wore air pollution masks and were handing out leaflets to passing students.

A Barford GP told The Oxford Mail that dust clouds that would be created by the quarry would be a "real danger," particularly for the young, the elderly, and people with chest conditions.

The Oxford Student

In that Oxford Mail article, the GP warned:

Dust from the quarry will contain silica, which can be extremely harmful to children, the elderly and those with chest conditions. In the USA and Canada there is legislation governing how near such a quarry can be to residential areas... distances far larger than this quarry will be from the village.

I am especially concerned for the hundreds of children who live nearby, particularly those who attend the nearby primary school and nursery. Over the time of the working of the quarry thousands of children will be affected.

The protestors are right to be concerned. Quarry dust, silica dust, can kill, does kill. The day after the protest, the article Construction must tackle its cancer problem appeared in Construction News:

According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), 40 per cent of occupational cancers in the UK are suffered by those in the construction industry.

For some added perspective, the industry employs around 7 per cent of the working population in the country, yet its people account for close to half of all workplace-related cancers.

Exposure to silica dust, released from cutting or grinding certain types of bricks, tiles and concrete, is the second biggest occupational killer, claiming more than 700 lives every year.

Awareness of the dangers of silica dust has increased, but again, it has come too late for far too many.

Jobs - after years of decline that argument no longer has merit

Any application to quarry Straitgate would, no doubt, use the argument of "jobs for local people" - not new jobs, as Aggregate Industries have stated there would not be any, but the safeguarding of jobs.

However, the number of jobs safeguarded would in fact be small - earlier in the year there were just nine employees at Blackhill Quarry, and at-risk Straitgate Farm itself employs four. A modern sand and gravel quarry does not support anywhere near, say, the 230 jobs offered by a tungsten mine.

The jobs argument may have had merit at the Public Inquiry in 1968 to support English China Clay's application to quarry Straitgate, Blackhill, and Colaton Raleigh, but, in those days 41 people worked at Blackhill, and a further 148 at Rockbeare.

Nationally the sand and gravel business has been in decline ever since, and "consolidation through mergers and acquisitions has seen in excess of 5,000 quarrying companies in 1960 reduced to some 200 currently" of which Tarmac, Lafarge, Aggregate Industries, RMC and Hanson now account for over 80% of output. 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 economic ramifications of a Straitgate Quarry on the wider area would be far greater than the immediate loss of the four farm jobs, and the extract from a DCC document below highlights the "Impacts of Mineral Development on the Economy". For Ottery St Mary and surrounding communities it is clear that the "Adverse Impacts" would far outweigh any of the "Opportunities". 

What they teach our children in schools today… and what they don't

The facts of life? Certainly. The facts of quarrying? Apparently, yes.

Using funding that was meant to tackle the problems created by quarrying and benefit communities affected by it, the Mineral Products Association (MPA), the trade body that "represents the whole of the British cement sector, 90 per cent of aggregates production and 95 per cent of both asphalt and ready-mixed concrete", has developed an interactive Virtual Quarry for use in schools, and teaching material for key stages 1-4 of the national curriculum for science, geography and citizenship. Understandably the material does not dwell on the disadvantages of quarrying:

You're in charge of restoring this quarry to a place for people and wildlife to enjoy. You can create a lake for people to sail on, plant some trees and reeds that will attract birds and build some hides to watch them from. Just click on the item you'd like and then on the place you want it to go. Water will only go into the bottom of the quarry and you can't grow trees in water! Keep an eye on the budget at the bottom of the screen as everything you choose costs money!

Not "Choose from landfill, industrial, or incinerator bottom ash reprocessing plant."

Who would have thought that a trade body, that counts amongst its successes:

MPA successfully lobbied the Government to freeze the rate of the aggregates levy for two years, saving the industry some £7 million in 2010/11,
MPA protected tens of millions of tonnes of potential site allocations in local development frameworks as a result of revised national guidelines for regional apportionment potentially worth hundreds of £ millions,

is influencing young minds in our schools, as well as the older ones in government?

Meanwhile, BBC Bitesize for GCSE geography takes a more balanced view, listing the pros:

Quarrying creates jobs in areas where there are limited opportunities.
There is a huge demand for the products of quarrying, such as building stone and cement. This is linked to the demand for new homes in the UK.
Quarrying provides income to local councils through taxation.
Good communications are needed for transporting the products of quarrying. As a result many remote rural areas benefit from improved access.
It is an important part of the UK economy. Over 30,000 people are employed in quarrying itself and related industries.

and the cons:

Wildlife habitats are destroyed.
Valuable agricultural land is taken away.
Quarrying creates pollution from noise and dust.
Heavy traffic causes pollution and congestion on narrow country roads. The vibrations from heavy traffic can cause damage to buildings.
Quarries create visual pollution and tourists may be deterred by the scars on the landscape.
Landfill sites and waste tips need to be monitored to check for a build up of gases, such as methane.
Limestone is a non-renewable resource - so it can be argued that quarrying is unsustainable.

If Straitgate was quarried, no new jobs would be created and the children of Ottery St Mary and West Hill would not enjoy any advantages. They would be the ones to suffer the disadvantages, and potentially the dangers too. Quarries are not only dangerous places for workers, the HSE identifying a "fatality rate over 20 times the all-industry average" and "potential for long-latency disease from exposure to respirable crystalline silica", but also for local youngsters, for whom a quarry presents a different set of dangers. The MPA has a "Stay Safe...Stay Out" campaign, and on Facebook it hopes that "by illustrating the tragic consequences of young people entering a quarry uninvited, this page hopes to raise public awareness of the potential hazards they expose themselves to. Every year young people are killed or seriously injured in quarries". It warns of a "sharp escalation" of break-ins and metal thefts, and that "trespassers often leave broken fences – and an open invitation for children in search of adventure". Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service recently issued their own warning.

Quarrying - an important part of the UK economy maybe, but - at a price.

Why are mineral workers warned of the dangers of RCS but not local residents?

Respirable Crystalline Silica is invisibly fine dust generated when quarrying and processing sand and gravel. Aggregate Industries' staff at Blackhill Quarry are warned of its dangers, as are at-risk workers elsewhere.

Report on Carcinogens by the US Health Department warns "Residents near quarries and sand and gravel operations potentially are exposed to respirable crystalline silica." Another report concludes "In our study, there seems to be a risk also in groups exposed to lower levels [of respirable quartz]. There is no consensus how low an acceptable risk level ought to be."

The deposits of sand and gravel at Straitgate are made of quartzite - a crystalline form of silicon dioxide or silica. Respirable Crystalline Silica (RCS) is angular Particulate Matter less than 10μm in size (PM10) that can enter the lungs. The quarrying sector is a major producer of PM10. The Health Protection Agency advises "The distance travelled by dust emissions will depend on the particle size and on the wind speed and turbulence. Smaller dust particles will stay airborne for longer and disperse over a wider area. Strong and turbulent winds will also keep larger particles airborne for longer. Data reported from quarries indicated that the courser dust particles (>30μm) are mainly deposited within 100m of the source, intermediate particles (10-30μm) between 250 and 500m, while fine particles (<10μm) can travel up to 1 km (DoE, 1995a,b). Ultrafine particles (<2.5μm) would be expected to travel considerably further." 

RCS can be generated a number of ways (not just from processing). "Inhaling finely divided crystalline silica dust in very small quantities over time can lead to silicosis, bronchitis, or cancer, as the dust becomes lodged in the lungs and continuously irritates them, reducing lung capacities. (In the body crystalline silica particles do not dissolve over clinically relevant periods of time.) Children, asthmatics of any age, allergy sufferers, and the elderly (all of whom have reduced lung capacity) can be affected in much less time." In its most common form, chronic silicosis "Usually [results] from long-term exposure (10 years or more) to relatively low concentrations of silica dust and usually appearing 10–30 years after first exposure."

The American Lung Association writes "...public concern may be raised about potential health effects from brief exposure to airborne silica or residence in locations where prevailing winds carry silica particles from natural or industrial sites. There is little evidence to suggest that brief or casual exposure [would living near a quarry be "brief or casual"?] to low levels of crystalline silica dust produces clinically significant lung disease or other adverse health effects. Chronic simple silicosis has, however, been described after environmental exposures to silica in regions where soil silica content is high and dust storms are common."

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) advises (guidance sheets QY0 and QY2) "All RCS is hazardous". "Tell workers: that very fine quarry dust can cause silicosis, which leads to disablement and early death". The HSE adds, with regard to construction sites, "In 2006, the workplace exposure limit for RCS was reduced to 100μg/m3 and there is pressure to lower it further to 50μg/m3 as epidemiological data suggest there is no known level of exposure at which silicosis does not occur." "Whilst we are able to estimate the exposure to RCS of an individual at work from past data, little is known about the inadvertent exposure of people who are close to but not involved in the work activity". HSE measurements did however "indicate the migration of silica across sites and potentially beyond the site boundaries". As far as recorded cases go, the HSE maintains "No cases of silicosis have been documented among members of the general public in Great Britain, indicating that environmental exposures to silica dust are not sufficiently high to cause this occupational disease". However "It should also be noted that excessive long term exposures to almost any dust, are likely to lead to respiratory (breathing) problems." HSE's American equivalent, the OSHA, warns "If it’s silica, it’s not just dust".

Aggregate Industries warns about RCS, but what warnings has DCC given? Well, no mention at all of RCS. Its Sustainability Appraisal did warn "Due to a changing climate there is the potential for the impact of noise and dust on sensitive receptors to become more intense. Hotter summers will provide conditions that will produce additional dust, and people will spend more time outdoors and leave the windows of dwellings and workplaces open for longer." "There is likely to be a negative impact upon the well-being and health of the residents at Straitgate Farm. This impact, combined with those likely for low to medium sensitive properties in the vicinity, would lead to a significant negative impact during the working of minerals". Its recommendation? "Policy relating to dust could encourage screening measures and dust control/mitigation". In its current Minerals Plan DCC "...will consider the practicality and the cost of methods of environmental control such as the spraying of materials with water at suitable stages in their handling and transport, the watering of areas of the site regularly used by vehicles and the use of dust extractors." Are the phrases "could encourage" and "consider the practicality and the cost" enough? RCS is carcinogenic. Cllr. John Hart, Leader of DCC, reiterated recently "you have to extract minerals from where they were deposited" - but to the detriment of human health? DCC's slogan is, after all, "improving life for all".

How much protection would residents expect from this carcinogenic dust source? Planning4Minerals (P4M) stresses that "Prevention of dust generation is critical [for example by working the mineral wet and damping internal haul roads] - once in the open air ...the operator will have little or no control over where [dust] settling occurs." P4M expects the "use of buffer zones to isolate dust sources from surrounding communities, often incorporated into local planning policy, with distances of 250-500m typically adopted, unless there are unusual or exceptional reasons to permit a variation." However, one study "monitored silica concentrations ...near a sand and gravel facility in Central California" and found "the impact from this source was still evident, even at the furthest downwind monitor - 745 meters away". The Technical Guidance to the NPPF says "A dust assessment study should be undertaken..." and "...additional measures to control PM10 might be necessary if, within a site, the actual source of emission (e.g. the haul roads, crushers, stockpiles etc.) is within 1,000m of any residential property or other sensitive use". Dust monitoring would form part of the planning conditions for any new quarry, but the "definition of standards for dust is a particularly complex issue...there are no agreed standards or guidelines for the nuisance impacts of mineral dusts in the UK." However The Air Quality Regulations 1997 do set a statutory objective for PM10 of 50μg/m3 or less, and the Environment Agency stipulates a maximum RCS level of 0.6μg/m3 around waste sites.

So, what are the benefits for a community newly saddled with this risk of airborne carcinogenic dust? DCC says "Mineral working at an individual site may take place over a number of decades and, while this timescale may seem a burden on local communities, it does offer the opportunity to develop strong working relationships between community and mineral operator [wow, thanks!] (as well as providing a source of local employment)." Blackhill Quarry currently employs nine. What about "the Aggregate Levy Sustainability Fund for projects in communities that are affected by aggregates extraction"? Scrapped in 2011.