Cemex agrees to close California sand mine
Published by Jonathan Rowland,
Editor
World Cement,
Cemex USA is to close its controversial Lapis sand mine in California under an agreement with the California Coastal Commission, the State Lands Commission and the City of Marina. The mine – the last coastal sand mine in the US – has been operating for more than 110 years.
The operation had been accused of causing erosion along the Monterey Bay – a claim that Cemex says “oversimplifies the issue”.
“We believe analysis to date confirms the causes of erosion along Monterey Bay are numerous and complex,” a company spokesperson told World Cement in a statement.
The Lapis sand mine “adheres to Cemex’s principles to operate responsibly”, the company continued, adding that it believed the operation continued to have all entitlements to operate and that no violations had occurred.
Yet despite this, the company has now decided to shutter operations at Lapis over the coming years, avoiding a potential legal battle.
“Cemex always strives to be a good neighbour and address to concerns of people in the communities in which we live and operate. To this end, Cemex has agreed to phase out the Lapis sand plant operations over the coming years,” the company said.
Quoting sources close to the agreement, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that Cemex would be allowed to continue extracting material from the mine for three years – albeit at a reduced rate. After this, all equipment would be removed from the beach. An inland facility would continue to process stockpiled sand for an additional three years.
Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/the-americas/06072017/cemex-agrees-to-close-california-sand-mine/
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