UPDATE: Lehigh Cement responds to questions about quarry expansion plans

Saed Hindash | For lehighvalleylive.com

This is a July 19, 2018, drone view of Lehigh Cement Co. LLC'€™s Nazareth Plant II and III quarries on the Upper Nazareth Township-Nazareth border. 

Lehigh Cement Co. LLC is looking for state approval to expand its quarry mining operations on the Nazareth-Upper Nazareth Township border.

The company owned by HeidelbergCement Group's Lehigh Hanson Inc. based in Irving, Texas, now mines 208.7 acres at its Nazareth Plant II and III quarries north of Route 248, on the western portion of the borough.

An application before the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection seeks permission for a 68.7-acre increase to 277.4 acres of quarry mining activity, representing a 33 percent increase in the area being mined.

A public comment period on the permit application is open until Dec. 28, and could lead to a public hearing on the proposal if requested.

Lehigh Cement was created in 2016 when Lehigh Hanson acquired Essroc Cement Corp. from Italcementi S.p.A. in a $4.2 billion deal.

The quarry operations use drilling and blasting to mine for limestone, which comprises about 80 percent of the raw materials for cement, according to the company.

Crushing equipment and a conveyor process and transport the limestone through Nazareth to the Nazareth Plant I east of the borough along Route 248 in Lower Nazareth Township.

Raw materials are then combined, blended and ground together and processed in a huge industrial furnace called a kiln, which reaches temperatures of 2,560 degrees Fahrenheit, Lehigh Hanson says.

"The intense heat triggers chemical reactions that form an intermediate product called clinker," the company says on its website. "The pellets of red-hot clinker are cooled and ground with a small amount of gypsum. The result is a fine powder that is now considered portland cement. Cement is ground so finely that it will pass through a sieve that is fine enough to hold water."

Kurt Bresswein | For lehighvalleylive.com

The company proposes a 33 percent increase in the quarries' area mined for cement production, from 208.7 acres to 277.4 acres.

Cement is used to produce concrete, for use in construction, precast products, pipe, masonry, oil and gas drilling and soil stabilization, according to the company.

Blasting at the Nazareth quarries occurs as close as 310 feet from the nearest dwelling or structure, according to the application. Quarry operations extend within 300 of occupied dwellings along South Green Street, Route 248, West Prospect Street, GW Stoudt Boulevard and Gracedale Ave; and within 300 of a public park off South Green Street, the public notice on the proposal states.

"The owners/operators of public buildings located less than 1,000 feet from blasting operations will be notified by phone call a minimum of one hour before the detonation of the blast," Lehigh Cement's DEP application states. "Precautionary measures may include the stopping or slowing of traffic when a blast site is within 800 feet of a public highway."

Neighboring properties are protected by what is called the quarries' highwall, as well as by perimeter berms.

"The majority of mining is conducted within the pit and therefore the noise is minimized," the application states. "The long belt conveyor and tunnel are equipped with noise dampening covers ensuring compliance with regulated noise levels."

Kurt Bresswein | For lehighvalleylive.com

Lehigh Cement Co. LLC'€™s Nazareth Plant II and III quarries are seen Nov. 28, 2018, from Route 248 on the Upper Nazareth Township-Nazareth border. 

As part of the proposed quarry expansion, Lehigh Cement "plans to demolish the structures occupying the proposed expansion areas in order to mine the area beneath. Lehigh is requesting the possibility to reuse the appropriate construction materials as backfill in the upper levels of the quarry."

Lehigh Cement estimates 44,699 cubic yards' worth of debris will be created by demolishing these primarily concrete structures, including Plant II and III buildings, silos and roads.

"Currently the entrance road to the facility is watered as needed for dust control and a reduced speed limit is posted," the application states, adding that water is also used as needed in the loading and unloaded areas and in the crushing and other processing equipment, including conveyors.

The application includes a review from the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission that found "a high probability that significant archaeological sites are located in this project area" based on "soil type, topographic setting, slope direction and distance to water of the project area (that) are similar to the settings of known archaeological sites in the vicinity."

The historical study said an archaeological survey is recommended but not required, and found the mining does not threaten any historic structures.

Sedimentation pond/pit sump discharges from the quarry flow into unnamed tributaries to both the East Branch of Monocacy Creek and Schoeneck Creek.

Four piers and a cantilever bridge seen Jan. 25, 2006, carry the conveyor that brings limestone from the Nazareth Plant II and III quarries through Nazareth to Lehigh Cement Co. LLC's cement production facility along Route 248 in Lower Nazareth Township. 

Lehigh Cement did not immediately provide responses to questions from lehighvalleylive.com, including on the timeline for the expansion.

"The area to be added to the permit was affected by previous mining and also includes the Nazareth Plant III Cement Plant," the DEP application states. "Mining activities will progress from the existing Nazareth Plant II Quarry working west to east towards the Nazareth Plant III Quarry. Initial mining will continue to be conducted in the Nazareth Plant II Quarry and will incrementally expand east."

The complete application is available for public inspection at the Upper Nazareth Township Building, 100 Newport Ave. Written comments, objections or a request for public hearing or informal conference may be submitted to the PA DEP, Pottsville District Mining Office, 5 W. Laurel Blvd., Pottsville, PA 17901 by Dec. 28, 2018, and must include the commenter's name, address, telephone number, and a brief statement on the nature of any objection.

A quarry dump truck passes Sept. 18, 2003, through a recently completed tunnel under Route 248 linking Lehigh Cement Co. LLC's  Nazareth Plant II and III quarries 1.6 miles away to its cement plant in Lower Nazareth Township. 

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.

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