Keeping it Close to Home

Why are most pits and quarries located near populated areas? Why can't they be relegated to sparsely populated lands in Northern Ontario, for example? Isn't aggregate plentiful in the north?

The further away the aggregate source is from its end use, the greater the economic, environmental and social impact.

Sixty percent of the cost of aggregate is transportation. As well, if every load of aggregate used in Ontario had to travel one extra kilometre to reach the jobsite, an extra 2.5 million litres of fossil fuel would be consumed annually, and annual greenhouse gas emissions would increase by 6,907 tonnes.

It makes environmental and economic sense to locate quarries and pits close to where the aggregate will be used.