Chouet quarry vote a relief for Ronez
RONEZ has welcomed yesterday’s States’ decision to start quarrying on Chouet headland, saying the vote will provide the job security for employees and benefit industrial production on the island.
Following the vote to allow quarrying on the Vale site, planning permission will still be required, but Ronez director and general manager Steve Roussel said the company could be working the site by the end of next year.
‘We’re very pleased at the decision from the States,’ he said. ‘It’s been quite an unsettling time for all our employees. We have loyal and long-standing employees who have had a cloud over their heads about the certainty of their employment for a couple of years since we have seen the end of Les Vardes coming.’
Deputies approved the move by 27 votes to nine although significant concerns were raised about the environmental impact of working Chouet. The alternative would have been importing aggregate from overseas.
‘The quarry headland is an outstanding area and I understand why people are concerned at the loss of it,’ Mr Roussel said.
‘I can understand local residents’ concern. We have a responsible attitude to the impact on the environment and were are looking at mitigation to put in place.
‘In a few weeks we’re going to have a public exhibition to explain our propositions and give people with interest or concern a chance to express their views so we can take them into account in the planning application.’
Ronez may look to run quarries at Les Vardes, which could have as little as 15 months’ operating life left, and Chouet, in tandem for a while, but Mr Roussel expected that there could be 35 years of life in the new site, which is the island’s last resource for stone.
‘We don’t want a situation where we’ve worked all the stone from Les Vardes before the full production at Chouet has started, so slowing down Les Vardes a bit looks like it might be necessary.’
Notably both the president and the vice-president of the Development & Planning Authority, Deputies Victoria Oliver and Andrew Taylor, voted against the Chouet development yesterday, and Mr Roussel accepted the decision would have been a tough one for deputies.
‘There are no easy decisions on these and no easy answer which satisfies everybody,’ he said.
‘There are lots of places in the island with rock but it’s the only site which is a large enough area that hasn’t previously been quarried and it has no houses on it, making a site of this size practical.
‘The cost of developing the quarry is difficult to say, but it will be a significant investment for our company, and our parent company, SigmaRoc, are backing the investment.’
