Planners back opposition to Estey's Bridge quarry, resident says

Residents in Estey's Bridge and Douglas campaigning against a proposed new rock quarry say planners with the regional service commission are on their side.

Robin Anderson of the Estey's Bridge local service district in central New Brunswick says residents near an existing rock quarry have already suffered a dramatic decline in their quality of life and should not be inflicted with a second one.

Springhill Infrastructure Ltd., a Fredericton company, has asked that a piece of land near Estey's Bridge be rezoned from an agricultural and residential area to an industrial area.

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But Regional Service Commission 11 planners are recommending against approval of the second quarry, which Anderson says is significant.

"It means that perhaps the quarry that's currently operating shouldn't be there, and it also means they don't want to have all this hassle again," he said Friday in an interview.

He said another committee is set to meet on Tuesday to discuss the project before it goes to the province for a decision.

Anderson is hopeful a deal can be reached that would involve either buying out the people affected by the rock quarry or moving the existing and proposed quarries somewhere else.

"Their homes were there long before the quarries came, and they've put their life into these homes, and live in these homes, and try to retire in these homes," he said. "All of a sudden their homes are worth zip."

Even if the commission recommends against the application, the Environment and Local Government Minister Serge Rousselle has until fall to overturn the decision.

Of the 256 letters the regional service commission received, 55 were opposed to the quarry and 201 were in support, although the supportive letters came mostly from people connected to the company, not from residents who would be directly affected by the quarry, Anderson said

"It's just a backdoor way of adding a whole lot of names to something that shouldn't be there," he said.

"Letters of support were received from employees, who attested to Springhill being good employers, good operators, good corporate stewards and competent at their business," said a commission report. "Letters from customers and trucking partners also indicated that Springhill are good operators, competent and their business and good corporate stewards."

Geoff Colter, vice-president of the Springhill Group of Companies, was disappointed with the commission's position.

The company is expected to employ 12 New Brunswickers at the Royal Road quarry, he said, and will be able to use mitigation measures to address the residents' concerns.

"The Springhill Group of Companies has always worked hard to establish and maintain good relations with our neighbours and follow all guidelines associated with our operating approvals and environmental regulations," he said in a statement to CBC News.

He said the second quarry would be an important part of the company's business supplying materials to the local construction market.

Conditions far worse this year

Anderson said most of the residents in the area are retired people, and their property values have dropped since the first quarry was established three years ago.

What was once a countryside of fields and forest, fox, deer and other wildlife was turned over to quarrying, despite opposition from residents, Andersen said in a previous interview with CBC News.

On Friday, he said that with the heat and dry weather this year, people are even more upset about the dust, potential health risks, truck noise and the increase in traffic.

Residents see 300 to 500 trucks a day, a number that could increase if a second quarry is put in, he said.

"Either someone has to step up to the plate and compensate them or close up and get out of there," Anderson said.

Marc André Chiasson, a spokesperson for the Department of Environment and Local Government, said it understands that "nearby residents have concerns and they have had the opportunity, through the rezoning process, to communicate their concerns."

He said the rezoning process is managed by the Regional Service Commission, which makes recommendations to the minister.