Pausing to survey the 60-foot-deep box culvert that will one day house a portion of Lehigh Cement Cos.' 4.5-mile conveyor system, Lehigh's Union Bridge facility plant manager Kent Martin said he expects the project will be complete in November 2017.
"It's going very well," Martin said. "We're on schedule and on budget."
Lehigh's Union Bridge quarry will be approaching the end of its limestone reserves in 2020, according to Martin. Because limestone is the main component for the company's cement, Lehigh will expand its mining operations to a site in nearby New Windsor. The quarries will be connected by the longest continuous curved conveyor ever installed in Maryland.
"The conveyor will provide 3 million metric tons of limestone to the cement plant in Union Bridge every year at 1,000 feet per minute," explained assistant site manager Frank Tedesco.
The project began last May and the company has completed 9,000 feet, roughly a third, of the tunnel that will enclose the conveyor, Tedesco said.
"We're constructing the tunnel with a culvert box so the conveyor can run underground, preventing noise and dust," Tedesco said.
While the project has run rather smoothly, Tedesco said the weather has provided some challenges.
"We had lots of rain in June and July so that set us back a bit but we're back on schedule thanks to a mild December," Tedesco said. "It changes on a week-to-week basis. When you're opening up a hole, you need to have stable, solid ground to build on."
Martin said the company had considered transporting limestone from the New Windsor quarry to the Union Bridge plant by railroad or truck but determined a conveyor system was the best option.
"We would have been running 600 trucks or 120 rail cars a day. Both would have been disruptive," Martin said. "The conveyor option was best for the community, emergency services and the environment. We like to think of it as a temporary disturbance for a long-term solution."
When the Union Bridge quarry reaches the end of its limestone reserves, Martin said the company will reclaim the quarry. The quarry will be filled with water, resulting in a 450-foot-deep inland lake.
According to Lehigh's environmental engineer Kurt Deery, each year quarry workers mine more than 3.5 million tons of limestone and ship it up and down the East Coast. The plant directly employs 160 people from surrounding communities and hundreds of contractors for the project.
Union Bridge Mayor Perry Jones Jr. said the town's restaurants and gas stations have seen an increase in business because of the conveyor construction.
"The 7-Eleven and the restaurants have been busy. It's been good for the town. So far, it's been a really good project," Jones said. "Most people think it will be a really good addition to the town because it won't put more trucks on the road, tying up the highways."
New Windsor Mayor Neal Roop agreed.
"They've brought more business to New Windsor," Roop said.
Roop also praised the company for its transparency.
"They're continually notifying the public. You can go onto the website and watch exactly what they're doing," Roop said.
For more information:
Visit www.newwindsorquarry.com for progress updates.
Road closure:
Winters Church Road in Union Bridge is scheduled to close on or about Jan. 22. According to a Joseph B. Fay Co. news release, the road will be reopened in June. Motorists using Winters Church Road should follow the posted detour route. The road closure is for construction of an underground conveyor belt serving the Lehigh cement plant in Union Bridge.
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