During discussions over new restrictive rules that govern gravel pit placement a Planning Commission member said; (paraphrasing because I wasn’t there and this is second hand)
“We need to get away from using and mining so much gravel and start using pavement and concrete instead.”
The new rules are so restrictive that the counties own gravel pit to provide material for a remote road was moved east-1/4 mile into the next county-to avoid the restrictions.
Sure thing, we can just start paving right on top of the grass with plaster of paris..... imported from China no less
IS this Planning commission member from Boulder, Billings, or Missoula? 😉
I figure they could be from any of the above. 😉
I never thought about it until just now, but it might be that a road project would use more gravel for a typical concrete or paved road than a gravel road of the same width.
Sounds like he is on a fast tract to move straight up in government. With forward thinking like that he may be Senator soon!
frequently the general public doesn't understand the issues of gravel in some places. Up here we're blessed with A LOT of access to quality gravel sources, so we can keep our haul costs down and still have spec gravel. Out east in the scoria hills - Mile City, etc, 100 mile one way gravel haul is not uncommon.
We passed an operation on Route 20 Monday in the east bound lanes (we were going west) in which Caltrans' had a contractor doing a repaving job. They have a train of equipment, first a pulverizer, then a water truck hooked to what looks like a mobile ashpalt plant which is towing an oil trailer, the mobile ashpalt plant is picking up the pulverized AC and leaving a windrow behind. Then finally a paving machine with pickup in front relaying the "new" ashpalt. We passed them again going eastbound this afternoon and drove over Monday's pavement which is already washboarded. We did pass the inspector with the Nuke gauge following along after the aforementioned paving train.
The oil is also flushing.
Everyone in the world except for me is a paving expert so I don't know all of the things that could be causing the problems.
I hated paving when I was an inspector because it seems like more than any other construction operation paving is full of know-it-all sort of people. It might having something to do with the somewhat art nature of the work.
