HB578INTRODUCED
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HB578
BYV6G4J-1
By Representatives Wood (D), Oliver
RFD: State Government
First Read: 15-Apr-25
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5 BYV6G4J-1 04/10/2025 ZAK (L)ma 2025-1525
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First Read: 15-Apr-25
SYNOPSIS:
This bill would prohibit the Alabama Department
of Environmental Management from processing certain
permits for quarries unless approved by the appropriate
local government.
This bill would provide procedures for a local
government to consider approving a quarry, including
requiring certain information be submitted to and
considered by the local government and that a public
hearing be conducted.
This bill would also require a local government
that has approved a quarry to establish an advisory
board to receive reports on the quarry's impact.
A BILL
TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
Relating to quarries; to prohibit the Alabama
Department of Environmental Management from processing certain
permits for quarries unless approved by a local government; to
provide procedures for quarry approval by a local government,
including required information to be considered and a public
hearing; and to establish a residential advisory board for
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hearing; and to establish a residential advisory board for
monitoring approved quarries.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as
the Alabama Quarry Safety Act.
Section 2. The Legislature finds and declares all of
the following:
(1) Quarries are of high importance to Alabama's
economy, as they produce the needed building materials for
roads and buildings and help make Alabama's residents' lives
better.
(2) Alabama is home to a wide-ranging and diverse
amount of high quality and economically valuable construction
aggregates.
(3) Quarries and the aggregate industry play an
essential role in their respective communities by providing
quality jobs.
(4) It is in the best interest of quarry operators to
continually work to maintain strong, positive relationships
with their local communities and surrounding property owners.
(5) Local governments and their residents, when
supplied with all necessary information, are best equipped in
determining whether a new quarry would be beneficial to their
community.
Section 3. For purposes of this act, the following
terms have the following meanings:
(1) AGGREGATE. Any collection of limestone, granite, or
sandstone extracted from natural sources through blasting.
(2) DEPARTMENT. The Alabama Department of Environmental
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(2) DEPARTMENT. The Alabama Department of Environmental
Management.
(3) LOCAL GOVERNMENT. The governing body of a county,
if a proposed quarry is located in an unincorporated area, or
the governing body of a municipality, if a proposed quarry is
located within a municipality's corporate limits.
(4) OPERATOR. The entity that owns or leases real
property for the purposes of permitting a quarry or that will
oversee quarry operations, including managing employees on
site, controlling the quarry's hours of operation, and
exercising day-to-day control and access of the quarry.
(5) QUARRY. An open pit mine, excavation site, or any
other place containing heavy machinery and equipment where
aggregate is mined and processed for sale or to be
incorporated as a constituent in a product to be sold. The
term does not include the extraction of coal, marble, sand,
and silts, either in an underground mine or open pit mine.
Section 4. (a) Commencing October 1, 2025, the
department may not process any new application for an air or
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit for a
quarry unless the operator has received siting approval
pursuant to this act from the local government.
(b) In determining whether to approve the siting of a
proposed new quarry, the local government shall consider each
of the following submitted by the operator:
(1) Comprehensive Quarry Use Plan: A detailed and
descriptive plan that outlines the proposed use of the quarry,
including its anticipated duration and potential impacts on
the surrounding area, and addresses the quarry's effects on
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the surrounding area, and addresses the quarry's effects on
local infrastructure, adjacent properties, businesses within
the local government's jurisdiction, or any other direct
impacts within the local government's jurisdiction.
(2) Traffic Impact Study: An analysis of the quarry's
effect on surrounding transportation networks, including
local, county, state, and federal roads within a reasonable
distance performed by a licensed traffic engineer . The study
shall account for increased traffic generated by both
employees and truck operations.
(3) Infrastructure Impact Report: A written report that
provides information outlining the local government's need for
construction aggregates to facilitate the development of
necessary infrastructure, including roads, residential and
commercial development, and other community development needs.
(4) Noise Study: An analysis of potential noise
disruptions for property owners in the vicinity of the quarry
and an overview of any mitigation efforts performed by an
acoustical engineer .
(5) Reclamation Plan: A plan that outlines how the
operator intends to restore the quarry to a post-use state
that benefits the local government and community.
(6) Community Advisory Plan: A plan that ensures
residents have the opportunity to communicate with the
operator and provides a framework for managing any disputes
that may arise.
(c) In addition to subsection (b), a local government
shall find both of the following are satisfied before
approving a quarry site:
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approving a quarry site:
(1) The quarry site is not less than 250 contiguous
acres in size.
(2) The operator, no later than the date on which the
quarry is approved, has established setbacks of at least 100
feet from the perimeter of the quarry site.
(d)(1) Within 60 days of receiving all documents and
information required by subsections (b) and (c), a local
government shall hold a public hearing on the proposed quarry
and provide notice of the hearing at least 30 days in advance
at the local government's meeting place and on the local
government's official website, if one exists. The notice shall
contain a description of the quarry's location, size, and
other pertinent information and identify an individual from
whom additional information may be garnered.
(2) All documents and information required to be
submitted to the local government pursuant to subsections (b)
and (c) shall be available for public inspection during normal
business hours at the local government's meeting place.
(e) Not more than 30 days after the public hearing, the
local government shall approve or deny the proposed quarry
site and provide the reasons for doing so. The failure of the
local government to render a decision on the proposed quarry
within the 30 day time frame shall constitute a denial by the
local government.
(f) This section shall not apply to either of the
following:
(1) Applications made to the department prior to
October 1, 2025, including an active or inactive quarry that
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October 1, 2025, including an active or inactive quarry that
has obtained a Mine Identification Number from the Mine Safety
and Health Administration prior to October 1, 2025.
(2) Permits for quarrying operations required for the
expansion of mining activity for a quarry that has previously
received a permit from the department.
(g) This section does not abrogate an operator from
obtaining and complying with all other necessary permits and
approvals required in connection with a proposed quarry.
Section 5.(a) Upon approving a quarry site, a local
government shall appoint at least five residents of the local
government's jurisdiction to an advisory board. The membership
of the board shall include each of the following:
(1) An elected official of the local government.
(2) An owner of residential property that is in a
reasonably close proximity to the quarry.
(3) A business owner or manager conducting business in
a reasonably close proximity to the quarry.
(b) The board shall meet not less than quarterly and
shall receive a report from the operator as to the quarry's
ongoing impact on the local community.
Section 6. This act shall become effective on October
1, 2025.
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