Industry group in plea to keep quarrying in Guernsey

Thursday 12 August 2021

Relying on imports of aggregate could lead to "catastrophic" supply chain interruption and cost rises to construction companies and their customers, according to an industry group in a message to States Deputies.

The Guernsey Building Trades Employers Association has urged the States to support the development of a quarry at Chouet Headland when the policy letter on future supply of aggregates is debated in the Assembly on 8 September.

A decision needs to be made "as a matter of urgency", as Les Vardes is set to be completely depleted of granite resources within seven years.

Ronez will need to relocate its stone plant before then in order to access its final reserves, and will still need to go through several rounds of planning and environmental applications before any move can be finalised. 

Pictured: A site analysis for Chouet Headland as proposed in its draft development framework, which is yet to be approved. 

Pictured: 14 staff at Ronez face serious uncertainty over their jobs if the States does not make a long-term decision on quarrying next month. The need to import aggregate to Guernsey during Ronez's relocation to a new stone plant is also becoming increasingly likely.

The GBTEA - which represents employers in the building trades industry - said that products already being imported, such as sand and marine gravel, cost more than locally quarried aggregate and that full importation will increase costs by 25 to 33%. 

"These costs will inevitably have to be passed on by the construction firms and will increase the cost of building projects to the States, businesses, and homeowners alike," it says. 

"Taken as a whole, these potential impacts of greater importation would result in a high risk that the supply of aggregate and related products could be interrupted or constrained, especially if the local construction market were to return to levels seen during previous busy periods.

"This could have a catastrophic impact on building project programmes, the profitability of construction firms and in the longer-term local construction costs." 

In a letter of comment, the Policy & Resources Committee has thrown its support behind on-island quarrying, which it believes will secure Guernsey's aggregate supply, keep money in the local economy and make sure the island "takes responsibility for its impact on the environment."