Earlier this month the operators of the Austen Quarry on Jenolan Caves Road, Hytec Industries, advised the Hartley District Progress Association of their intention to commence a process to expand the operations of the quarry and to extend its life. In its early planning stages the proposed expansion of the quarry will increase the total level of rock extraction from the quarry by some 39 million tonnes.
It will necessitate an expansion of the quarry extraction area by over 100% and the removal of 6 million tonnes of overburden that will be progressively used in rehabilitating the site.
The expansion will extend the quarry’s life by thirty years. Truck movements will increase with the expansion but will remain within the limits of the existing approval. Operating times will remain much as now.
Economic benefits flowing from the operation include the provision of twenty direct jobs, forty further jobs being maintained in support industries.
The proposal should provide significant ongoing benefit to the local economy; on the other hand, it will entail further visual impairment of the Hartley Valley landscape.
Individual residents should make their own assessment of the proposal. Comprehensive material relating to the proposal and the process for its approval is available from the Hytec website at
http://www.hytec.com.au/technical/p95.aspx .
As this page has recently been removed from the Hytech Website, it is suggested that you make contact with Hytech via this link: ttp://www.hytec.com.au/contact-us.html
You may also find at that site, forms that can be used to raise issues or concerns relating to the project, but they may also have been removed by now as they allowed only one week for public submissions to this proposal, so best address your concerns straight to the management.
If there are any concerns regarding the process that you would like considered by the Progress Association, please address those in writing to, The Secretary, Hartley District Progress Association. PO Box 372 Lithgow NSW 2790.
