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UPDATED: June 14, 2012 The Duxbury Development Review Board did not unanimously approve a permit for a gravel pit on Ward Hill as was reported in the June 7 issue of The Valley Reporter. Rather, that board unanimously denied a permit for that project due to lack of supporting documentation. The reporting error was caused by opening the Duxbury DRB minutes in a document from the town’s website in a format that turned some words into gibberish and resulted in a misread of the minutes. |
By Lisa Loomis
A quarry producing three to eight loads of rock per day has been approved for a 16-acre parcel of land on Ward Hill in Duxbury. The land is owned by Eric Potter.
The Duxbury Development Review Board approved the quarrying operation at the site for the former OMYA quarry at a meeting this spring. The land is owned by Eric Potter and is located on the left side of Ward Hill on the way up to the first summit before the road takes a sharp right.
The project required a conditional use permit, which was granted after two meetings of the board, with members of the public present to voice concerns about the operation.
Jim Despres of Kingsbury Construction was present at the meeting last month for Potter and explained that the project involved cleaning out rock and flattening the area, removing approximately 30,000 yards of rock over a three-year time period. Despres said that the operation would involve some blasting in the pit to loosen up the rock and, in response to concerns about that, would provide insurance to protect adjoining landowners; he said that the contractors carry their own insurance which would also cover any damage to neighboring properties.
Other questions raised by the public include concerns about impacts on wells – neighbors were told that the quarry is not deep enough to impact local wells.
As proposed and approved, there would be about 280 yards removed weekly and trucked to the Mad River Park in Waitsfield. Crushing and screening will not take place on site. Three to eight loads of gravel will be removed daily, Monday through Friday, by 14-yard trucks. The trucking will take place from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. to avoid school busses and the season will run from May through November with approval of the Duxbury road foreman.
In the event of heavy rain, the Duxbury road foreman could shut down the project and the developer will have a water truck on site to water down the roads to reduce dust.
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