A new quarry opens in Surrey, aiming to excavate 1.2 million tonnes of sand and gravel for London’s building projects.
Cemex UK now has a quarry in Shepperton. The company says it is very important, as they will keep supplying London with materials. These materials are for crucial building jobs.
They want to dig 1.2 million tonnes in five years. This will come from Gaston Bridge Road. After, they need another year to fix the land, so it will become farmland again.
Wayne Strevens works for Cemex UK. He manages aggregates. This new quarry is really important, he says, because sand and gravel are tough to find. This makes the opening a really exciting time.
The new quarry will help London a lot. They invested in new equipment to ensure they meet city demands. They will provide reliable, quality materials.
Shepperton is in Spelthorne, where mining has a long history. The council says almost 25% of land was mined. Old maps show over 200 old sites, dating between 1876 and 1940.
The council says sites were filled long ago. Waste disposal rules did not exist back then. Now, these locations have many uncertain contamination risks, requiring some solving.
Spelthorne had many quarry jobs in 2014. They had the most in the whole country. Reports then said Spelthorne was a digging capital, and the reports included England and Wales.
Cemex UK is a big supplier in Britain. They run over 100 quarry sites here. Cemex has a concrete plant in Leatherhead, Surrey, and three other quarries nearby, existing in Slough and Windsor.