By David Ross
I was hiking on the Bruce Trail near Side Road 15 when I heard the tremendous racket of heavy machinery. Side Road 15 is a no drive zone but you can walk there. The road goes straight until it meets a stone quarry. When I investigated the noise I did not realize the size of what I was encountering until a friend told me that the pit, which was now expanding, started at the Re-Store. Huge machines were an inch high.
I realized I knew nothing about stone quarries or gravel pits. How are they regulated? How much does the county get paid for the gravel that is taken out of them? Where does the money go? Where does the stone go? What are the plans to rehabilitate the land after the resource has been taken out of the open pit mine? How does it affect the water table? Who okayed the expansion?
There are lots of gravel pits and stone quarries all over Grey County; just go hiking and you will find them. It is easy to be concerned about things that are far away. But when they are only two miles away from home, you ask yourself, how do I not know about this? Gravel and stone is used in construction material, as in cement, concrete, and building stones. It is used in the construction and maintenance of roads and highways. I found a paper that talks about how Ontarian government views this valuable resource. It is at http://ojs.unbc.ca/index.php/acme/article/view/952/806. Someone also suggested Peggy Hutchison should come and speak at 350 Grey Bruce Owen Sound. She has agreed to speak on Thursday, June 2, 2016, at 7 p.m. at St. George's Parish Hall, 1049 4th Ave E. Peggy has extensive experience on how to manage this valuable resource.
