Study of present situation and future prospect of environmental and safety measures in suburban aggregate mines in Japan

Development of aggregate resources for use in structural concrete has been encouraged in Japan to support infrastructure improvement and national land conservation. Natural aggregate is a valuable resource necessary for sound economic development and its importance is growing. However, against the backdrop of the ongoing depletion of resources, growing concern over nature conservation and increasingly tightened control over resource use, the supply of natural aggregates such as sea/river/pit sand and sea/river gravel has been decreasing. The number and scale of public works and construction of buildings have been decreased due to the recent recession and the critical public opinion about public works. However, the necessary public works have been done as in the past. The lack of high quality aggregates has become a serious problem in Japan. Dredging of sea floor sand and development of new sand quarries for securing good quality sand have become the target of criticism from the viewpoint of environmental protection. This paper describes the present situation and future prospects of environmental and safety measures in suburban aggregate mines in Japan.