My thoughts on aggregate
resources
Aggregate is a high-bulk, low unit value
commodity that derives much of its value
from being located near the market.
Transporting aggregate long distances can
add significantly to the overall price of the
product. For example, a city of 100,000 can
expect to pay an additional $1.3 million for
each additional 10 miles that the aggregate it
uses must be hauled. Therefore, aggregate
operations frequently are located near
population centers and other market areas.
Despite society’s dependence on natural
aggregate, urban expansion often works to
the detriment of the production of those
essential raw materials. “Resource
sterilization” occurs when the development of
a resource is precluded by another existing
land use. For example, aggregate resources
that exist under a housing development or
shopping center commonly will not be
extracted.
Preserving aggregate resources for future
use, whether by policy or legislation,
should be incorporated into planning
designations and land use decisions if it is
to be effective. Existing operations and
identified future resources need to be
protected from competing land uses such
as residential, commercial, or industrial
encroachment, whose location is usually
much more flexible than the aggregate
resources.
Langer, W.H., 2011, Aggregate Resource
Availability in the Conterminous United States,
including suggestions for addressing shortages,
quality, and environmental concerns: USGS
Open-File Report 2011–1119, 87 p.
Langer, W.H., Van Gosen, B.S., Arbogast, Belinda,
and Lindsey D.A., 2011, Data report for the
geologic and scenic quality evaluation of
selected sand and gravel sites on the Wind
River Indian Reservation, Wyoming: USGS
Open-File Report 2011–1302, 158 p.
Langer, W.H., 2009, Chapter 1-Sustainability of
aggregates in construction, in Sustainability of
Construction Materials, Woodhead Publishing,
Cambridge, UK, p. 1-30.
Langer, W.H., 2008, An overview of crushed stone
and sand and gravel resources in the United
States: Aggregates International, Cologne,
Germany, pp. 6-14.
Langer, W.H., 2006, Crushed stone, in Industrial
Minerals and Rocks 7th Edition, Society for
Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration Littleton,
Colorado, pp. 171-180.
When the planning community ignores
aggregate, management of those resources
is left to chance. Management by default
commonly results in unintended
consequences including sterilization of
resources, juxtaposition of incompatible land
uses, negative impacts to traffic,
unacceptable changes to the landscape, and
undesirable environmental impacts.
There have been a number of attempts to
identify and protect quality aggregate
resources for future use, and those attempts
have met with mixed success. Those that
have been most successful have an
associated incentive or enforcement
capacity. In spite of those efforts, local
decision-makers commonly are in a
quandary when it comes to balancing the
regional needs for aggregate with local
concerns for the health, safety, and comfort
of their constituents.
Langer, W.H.,2006, Construction sand and gravel,
in Industrial Minerals and Rocks 7th Edition,
Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration
Littleton, Colorado, pp 159-169.
Langer, W.H., 2004, Potential environmental
impacts of quarrying stone in karst, in
Proceedings, 38th Forum on the Geology of
Industrial Minerals, St. Louis, MO: Missouri:
Geological Survey and Resources Assessment
Division Report of Investigations No. 74, pp.
169-183.
Langer, W.H., Drew, L.J., and Sachs, J.S., 2004,
Aggregate and the environment: American
Geological Institute Environmental Awareness
Series No. 8, 64 p
Langer, W.H., 2004, Environmental Risk Analysis
and Aggregate Mining, in Proceedings, 37th
Forum on the Geology of Industrial Minerals:
British Columbia Ministry of Energy and Mines,
Geological Survey Branch Paper 2004-2, pp.
87-96
Langer, W.H., 2002, Construction materials -
Crushed stone, sand, and gravel in
Encyclopedia of Materials - Science and
Technology, Elsevier Science, p. 1537-1546.
Langer, W.H., 2002, A general overview of the
technology of in-stream mining of sand gravel
resources, associated potential environmental
impacts, and methods to control potential
impacts: U.S. Geological Survey Open File
Report OF-02-153, 38 p.
Langer, W.H., 1988, Natural aggregates of the
conterminous United States: U.S. Geological
Survey Bulletin 1594, 33 p., 2 plates, 10 figs.,
6 tables.
Selected publications on aggregate resources
