CAMBRIDGE NEWS | 1
THURSDAY JUNE 1, 2023
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JUNE 1, 2023
Quarry dust-up looms By Mary Anne Gill
A David and Goliath battle is underway following an application, lodged last week, to establish a giant quarry on the eastern outskirts of Cambridge. Even before independent commissioner Rob van Voorthuysen starts work on assessing the proposal on behalf of Waipā District Council, locals are queuing up to oppose the plans. The 815-page application, also lodged with Waikato Regional Council, has come from RS Sand Ltd - owned by Stevenson Aggregates Ltd - and will see up to 400 truck movements a day through the town. The required water take is 1.2 million litres a day – half for the processing plant, the rest for dust suppression. Quarries produce microscopic particles of silica that exist within sand dust. Recent research shows the dust can travel many kilometres and is responsible for a disease called silicosis, a long-term lung disease which cannot be cured. Opponents include the Newcombe Rd quarry’s immediate neighbour Rhys Powell who alerted The News to the proposal last year. The 134.67ha of land for the proposed quarry – which would only operate on 27ha - is zoned rural.
It is 3.5kms east of central Cambridge and about one kilometre from new housing to the northeast of the town. It is surrounded by a mix of farming activities
and lifestyle properties with Cambridge Golf Club nearby. Lining up behind Powell is the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce which plans
to use its advocacy role on behalf of the chamber’s 320 members. Chief executive Kelly Bouzaid said the chamber is not anti-quarry and
recognises there are other quarries operating successfully in the district. “We do however have a duty of care, given the potential significance of
the proposed site and its proximity to Cambridge, and the possible impacts it could have on our township,” she said.
Continued on page 3
Cup kings
Hautapu are the first holders of a new trophy for rugby colts in Cambridge – and here’s the proof. The red and whites beat Leamington 20-10 on Saturday when the Centennial Cup was put up for grabs for the first time. The trophy was donated by the Cambridge Rugby Referees Association, which celebrated its centenary with a feast of rugby last weekend. The match was a close one – it was 5-3 to Hautapu at the break and with a shade over 20 minutes to play the teams were level at 10-all. Hautapu scored two late tries to clinch the game and the cup. Scorers: Hautapu 20 (Joel Hazelton 2, Robert Prescott, Blake Seavill tries) Leamington 10 (Jacob Jozwik try, Caleb Pollard, pen, conv). Photo: Mary Anne Gill. See story, Page 14.
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