A major quarry proposal for Royalla, near Canberra, has sparked controversy over health and traffic concerns. Photo: Gunlake Quarry.
The Monaro Rock Quarry project near Royalla has progressed to its next stage with the publication of its environmental impact statement (EIS).
Locals now have less than a month to respond to thousands of pages that outline the project’s effects and proposed mitigation strategies.
The quarry has been a controversial project for Royalla residents, who fear the impacts on their area.
While Monaro Rock has said it is engaging with the community, many locals remain unconvinced.
Royalla Community Association member Tony Lewis said the development was inappropriate.
“There’s no good way to put an additional 200 heavy-load and heavily-laden trucks onto the Monaro Highway,” Mr Lewis said.
“There’s really no good action that they can take … to make this safe.”
Mr Lewis said even if trucks used alternative routes, potentially hundreds of trucks would be using small community roads.
The current EIS is for no more than 200 trucks a day, or 25 an hour, to or from the site.
While association members are concerned about traffic impacts, Mr Lewis emphasised that for them, no concessions or changes to the plan would make the project acceptable.
“We have grave concerns about the long-term health impacts of silica,” he said.
”More and more evidence is coming to light around the world about how this is bad for people.”
According to Mr Lewis, the town is already affected by the dust from two other nearby quarries.
“We’ve had reports of people that their house is just covered in a layer of dust because you can’t keep it out,” he said.
”So, despite their claims and information that they will suppress all the dust over a 30-year period, there’s a real concern that this will be a health impact for residents.”
A map showing the site and topography for the proposed rock quarry near Royalla. Photo: Supplied.
Silica dust has been a hazard consideration at quarries since changes were made to industry standards in NSW in 2020.
According to Monaro Rock, it is chiefly trying to extract rhyodacite ignimbrite, a mineral used for the production of concrete and rich in silica.
The project’s EIS says air pollutants such as silica are likely but manageable.
“Given the nature of the material to be extracted and processed at the project site, respirable crystalline silica (RCS) may be generated during those activities,” the report says.
The report says the silica dust would be controllable and below legal limits.
“Impacts associated with RCS would be negligible.”
The company has also outlined for the community several mitigation techniques it would consider to minimise adverse impacts.
With the EIS now published, community members have a month to lodge their submissions to the state.
Mr Lewis said 28 days to object to more than 1000 pages of documents was unfair.
Nevertheless, he and the association will be rallying their community and looking for support across the border in South Canberra to oppose the development.
The project, which aims to extract one million tonnes annually from the site for 30 years, has been designated a State Significant Project.
This means it will have to be approved by the NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment rather than the local council.
In an August update, Monaro Rock said it was taking feedback from the community, and that the project would deliver up to 30 jobs and stimulate local supply.
Following the public exhibition of the EIS, the next step for the developer will be to respond to submissions and potentially amend its development application to address concerns before it moves to the state government for consideration.
As a State Significant Project, the plan will require consent from either the Independent Planning Commission or the Minister of the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment.
Monaro Rock was contacted for comment on public opposition, but did not respond.
The quarry proposal is on public display. Interested parties can read about the project or lodge a submission through the NSW Planning Portal. Submissions close on 24 September.
Monaro Rock will hold an online community information session on 9 September.
