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The Sand, Gravel, & Construction Materials Industry

 
In British Columbia, aggregate pits are designated as mines. As such, the Ministry of Energy and Mines is responsible for their planning, management and regulation, including permitting, health, safety and reclamation.
 
Crushed stone and sand and gravel are most often used by the construction industry. For example, an average 1,500-square-foot home, when considering its proportional share of new streets, schools, churches, municipal construction projects and shopping centers, requires about 330 tons of aggregate.
 

Typical Uses of Aggregates    

The cost of transporting processed aggregate to the point at which it will be used is a critical consideration in the eco-nomics of any quarry operation. Because transport plays a central role in determining aggregate prices, the use of competitive and high-volume delivery means, such as barge transport, and deep sea vessels, allows penetration and expansion in other market areas.
 

Producer Costs

(Click images to enlarge)
 
As a result of declining resource base and longer travel distances between gravel pits and end users, sand and gravel prices have risen in the last decade. Statistics Canada reports that the sand & gravel index increased over 25% in the period 1994 through 1998. This increase in cost is forecast to continue as close by inventories are exhausted.
 
Whereas the volume of coastwise shipping has been small relative to total production, B.C. leads the country in this area and the outlook for continued growth is positive.
 

 
The total value of production from stone quarries has increased dramatically from the 1980's, a period of slower growth. While the mining industry as a whole has not had widespread growth, the sand & gravel / quarry component has. It is also significant that mining operations have one of the highest employment multipliers of any industry.
 

 

 

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