| Environmental Protection:
With increasing environmental awareness, the
Irish Blue Limestone industry is continually reaspraising exisiting practices.
Recirculation of water from the saws and polishing lines has always taken place but
handling the sludge from the cutting process is being improved by the inroduction of
modern filter press systems.
Surplus water from the
quarries is being treated prior to discharge to protect adjacent watercourses. Run
off from adjacent land is being intercepted and diverted to prevent unnecessary
contamination.
Processing dimension stone results in considerable amounts
of waste limestone. Where practical, this is being used as an aggregate source rather than
being tipped on the surface.
Exploration work to assure the long term availability of
the Irish Blue Limestone is being accompanied by sophisticated quarry planning that takes
account of the environmental impact of the development. Where possible, existing
waste tips are being reclaimed as part of this process and the design of future tips
provides both screening to the quarry and plant with rehabilitation of the disturbed land
at the earliest possible stage |
