State seeks comments on four new rock quarries
The Daily Inter Lake
The Montana Department of Environmental Quality is seeking public comment on four new rock quarries proposed on almost 750 acres of Plum Creek Timber Co. land located near McGregor Lake and Lower Thompson Lake.
The Castle Rock, Redmond, Schellinger Twin Creek and Herrig 15 rock quarries would all be within 15 miles of Lower Thompson Lake and within 11 miles of McGregor Lake, according to Patrick Plantenberg with the state agency's Environmental Management Bureau.
The quarries would provide decorative rock, building stone, riprap, aggregate and other products. Plum Creek has asked for four 20-year permits for the operations. The state is preparing an environmental assessment; the deadline for public comment is Jan. 30.
A number of small quarries already operate throughout Northwest Montana, Plantenberg said, but most don't disturb more than 5 acres at a time. However, given the increased demand for rock products, Plum Creek is trying to get ahead of the curve by getting permits for larger quarries, he said.
Disturbed areas include access roads, staging areas and the quarry itself.
In 2003, the company asked for a single operating permit that would have allowed it to expand quarrying activities throughout its Montana land holdings. At the time, 41 private contractors were producing rock products on Plum Creek land, with 211 acres of disturbed ground.
The new permit would have allowed 517 acres to be disturbed at 105 sites within five years, with a total of 3,189 disturbed acres over 20 years.
Plantenberg said it was later determined that multiple quarries could not be authorized with a single permit. Consequently, the company is seeking individual permits.
The Castle Rock quarry would be 17 miles west of Marion and four miles south of McGregor Lake, he said. The application covers 101 acres with a maximum of 20 acres being disturbed or unreclaimed at any one time.
The Redmond quarry would be 15 miles southwest of Marion and nine miles south of McGregor Lake. That application covers 132 acres with a maximum of 20 acres in use at any one time.
The Schellinger Twin Creek quarry would be six miles northeast of Lower Thompson Lake and four miles northwest of McGregor Lake. It would cover 377 acres with a maximum of 40 acres disturbed at any one time.
Finally, the Herrig 15 quarry would be 33 miles west of Kalispell and 14 miles northeast of Lower Thompson Lake. It would cover 133 acres with a 25-acre maximum disturbance at any one time.
None of these operations would be visible from U.S. 2, Plantenberg said. Also, none of the applications indicate that blasting would be needed to remove rock.
Production levels at these facilities "would be completely market-driven," he said. "These quarries aren't like metal mines. They can be very sporadic. Nothing will be stockpiled or packaged ahead of time. Typically, they'll get a contract for four pallets of a certain rock type and then they'll package and ship it."
A decision on the operating permits should be issued soon after the Jan. 30 environmental assessment deadline, Plantenberg said. Copies of Plum Creek's applications are available in Helena.
Public comments, questions and concerns may be directed to Plantenberg at the Environmental Management Bureau, P.O. Box 200901, Helena 59620. They also may be e-mailed to pplantenberg@mt.gov