NSSGA: Proposed rule would cost producers immensely

NSSGA President and CEO Michael Johnson released a statement expressing concern over a proposed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule extending federal jurisdiction over large swaths of land that would be classified as “waters of the U.S.” According to NSSGA, this proposed rule would overstep Congress and the U.S. Supreme Court by removing the significance of “navigable” from the Clean Water Act. The association adds that the rule would impose “immense costs” on U.S. aggregates operations.

Read more in Pit & Quarry.

NSSGA issues comments on proposed silica rules

NSSGA filed formal comments with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) on the agency’s proposed rule on occupational exposure to respirable crystalline silica.

OSHA’s proposal is important to aggregates producers because MSHA aims to propose a silica standard for the mining industry later this year, according to NSSGA, which is preparing to respond to MSHA’s proposal at that time.

Read more in Pit & Quarry.

Growth spurt for aggregates

The Freedonia Group recently reported some very good news, forecasting worldwide sales of construction aggregates to increase 5.8 percent per year to 53.2 billion metric tons by 2017. And the news is good for North America as well, with sales expected to rise over the next five years.

Read more in Pit & Quarry.

Quarry wants OK from Waite Park to mine more granite

Seeing an increase in demand for its granite, the owner of a quarry in the heart of Waite Park wants to start producing more. Martin Marietta Aggregates operates a quarry at 1450 Division St. in Waite Park. It is requesting an amendment to its conditional use permit so it can mine more granite

Crushed stone, sand and gravel consumption increase

An estimated 367 million metric tons (Mt) of crushed stone was produced and shipped for consumption
in the United States in the third quarter of 2013, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. This is an eight percent increase compared with the same period of 2012.

Read more in Pit & Quarry.

Aggregate mine reclamation common, welcome practice

ARM aggregate producer members are environmentalists at heart and happily incorporate reclamation activities into their permitting conditions with local governing bodies. An example of this is Aggregate Industries and Nelson mine, which is located on Grey Cloud Island on the Mississippi. Here's a newsletter that features a story of that mine.

SME publishes paper on aggregates contribution to infrastructure

The Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration (SME) published a technical briefing paper about the contribution of the aggregates industry to infrastructure investment. SME also called for full funding of the country's surface transportation programs.

"Restoration of an aging transportation infrastructure in the United States will require the availability and production of a substantial amount of aggregates. Aggregates provide the literal foundation of our nation."

Read the SME paper.

U.S. Supreme Court limits agencies' ability to impose permit conditions on landowners

On June 25th, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an important Takings Clause decision with far-reaching implications for real estate developers and other who rely on federal or state permits. In Koontz v. St. Johns River Water Management District, the Court extended the doctrine of "unconstitutional conditions" established in the Court's Nolland and Dolan cases.

Read more in the e-newsletter of Greenberg Traurig, LLP.

Frac Sand moratorium adopted in Yucatan Township

The Yucatan Township has imposed a one-year moratorium on frac sand mining within its borders. The move, which was passed 2-1 by the Yucatan Board of Supervisors on Sept. 11, curtails development of frac sand mine on the Tracie Erickson property at 23148 State Highway 16. . . .
(The township) also defines the difference between "construction minerals" excavated from existing rock quarries and sand pits, and "industrial minerals," which include silica sand, quartz, and natural stone.

Source: Tri-County Record, Rushford.

Industrial sand mining benefits are below the radar

There are lots of worries about the environmental effects of the oil and gas drilling practice known as "fracking" and the sand mining in Minnesota and Wisconsin that's key to the drilling. Right now, though, the economic benefits of that drilling are planting roots throughout the upper Midwest.

Read more in Minnesota Public Radio.

Wisconsin industrial sand sites double

Tucked behind a hill in rural Trempealeau County, farmland undergoes an industrial transformation. Outside this city of 1,300, Preferred Sands turns Wisconsin’s sandy soil into a hot commodity.

Read more in MinnPost.

Planners offer industrial sand proposals

The city of Winona is about a third of the way through its one-year moratorium on new and expanding frac sand facilities, and on Monday the City Council heard an update from staff on the city’s progress studying the issues that surround the controversial industry.

Read more in the Winona Daily News.

Main addresses concerns of aggregate associations

MSHA Assistant Secretary of Labor Joe Main outlined a number of initiatives and reforms his agency has undertaken over the last two years in remarks Monday to several Midwest state aggregate associations. He also reflected on the disaster that killed 29 miners at the Upper Big Branch in April 2010 and described how the accident forced MSHA to reexamine safety and health.

Read more in Pit & Quarry.

Amish residents questions mining activity in SE Minn

The rolling countryside near St. Charles is a place of horse-drawn buggies and one-room schoolhouses, woodworking shops and limited electricity. Settled by 60 Amish families, it's a place of simple living, where farmers like Daniel Gingerich raise livestock. Gingerich, a bishop in the isolated community, fears the burgeoning silica sand mining industry in southeastern Minnesota could harm their way of life.

Read more at Minnesota Public Radio.

House bill defining aggregates as "strategic and critical' headed for vote

A bill to speed development of strategic and critical minerals, including aggregates, by limiting the duration of reviews of drilling permits and requiring concurrent rather than sequential consideration, moves to the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives July 11.

Read more at eDIgest & Washington Watch.

State experts weigh in on industrial sand

Officials representing various state agencies gathered in the Winona Middle School Auditorium on Wednesday night to give a series of frac sand-based presentations to concerned citizens and decision-makers from Winona and surrounding communities.

Read more in the Winona Daily News.

Industrial sand mining causing regulators to scramble

Finance & Commerce newspaper ran a subscription-only article June 18th about the growing interest in frac sand mining regulation by legislators. The concern is that current environmental permitting laws and regulators are not equipped to handle the rush for frac sand, particularly in southeastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin.

In the recent legislative session, two legislators proposed amendments to the omnibus environment bill. Rep. Andrew Falk, DFL-Murdock, proposed adding the condition that frac sand companies pay a fee into an account that counties could use to cover reclamation costs. Rep. Rick Hansen, DFL-South St. Paul, proposed increasing the aggregate tax to pay the cost of public infrastructure improvements needed as a result of frac sand mining. Neither amendment got very far in the 2012 session.

Finally, the article described how the state departments of Health and Transportation, as well as the MPCA are reviewing their processes and permits to see if they're sufficient enough for the fast-growing frac sand mining.

ARM is monitoring this issue very closely and we'll keep you informed when there are new developments, particularly regarding state regulations.  - Fred Corrigan

Lafarge North America appoints new president, CEO

The board of directors of Lafarge North American Inc. has appointed John Stull as Lafarge's senior leader for aggregate, cement and concrete operations in the United States. The company says this appointment, which brings these Lafarge business lines in the United State together under a single leaders, will further the company's customer focus as it delivers sustainable solutions to the construction industry.

Read more in Pit & Quarry.

Sand sediment spills into St. Croix River

A spill at a sand mining facility in Wisconsin has dumped an unknown amount of sand and other sediment into the St. Croix River and wetlands near the Minnesota border, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources confirmed Thursday. The sand-laden water may have harmed aquatic life, but DNR officials said it's too soon to know the extent of the damage. They plan to conduct a full investigation with the assistance of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. National Park Service, and Burnett County Conservation officials.

Read more at Minnesota Public Radio.

County sets industrial sand fee

The Winona County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday approved a road tax for trucks hauling frac sand as the county’s three-month moratorium entered its last week. Mining operations will pay 21.9 cents per ton per mile for each truck that hauls frac sand on paved county roads; the county will use the money to cover any road damage caused by the increased traffic.

Read more in the Winona Daily News.