Alberta Sand & Gravel Association

Aggregates & Your Community

What is Aggregate?

Aggregate is the word used to describe sand, rocks, gravel, crushed stone, shale, basically any rock product that is mined out of the ground.

Aggregates are used in all types of construction – roads, schools, houses, hospitals, bridges, water treatment plants and sidewalks, all need aggregates to be built, to name a few.

Aggregates are a precious, non-renewable resource, much like oil or natural gas, and must be protected and respected.

Where is Aggregate Used?

Sand is used at the neighbourhood playground and on the golf course.

Aggregate was used to construct the basement of your home, your driveway, sidewalks and patio.

Sand and gravel is used on your local baseball diamonds and bike trails.

Sand and other aggregate is spread on slippery roads in winter to make them safer.

Aggregates were used to build your kids' school, your community centre, and probably the building you work in.

You drive, bike, or walk to and from work on thousands of tonnes of aggregate every day .

On average, every Albertan uses 10 to 14 tonnes of aggregate each year – that's one full truckload!

Why We Should Treat Aggregates Like Gold

We can't forget that aggregates are a non-renewable resource. Once land is developed, access to aggregate is forever lost on that site.

If an aggregate resource is no developed in our area, aggregate materials will have to be hauled by truck from another site – one that could be many more kilometres away.

The farther a community needs to travel to find sources of aggregates for all types of construction, the more expensive the aggregate becomes.

What that means to you, the consumer, is that it will cost more to pave your driveway, to build a house or a school, or even to fill your child's sand box. As well, your community will be subjected to increased vehicle emissions from increased fuel use, and more wear and tear on local roads and highways all resulting from increased truck traffic hauling the aggregates from outside your local area.

We'll Also Treat Your Community Like Gold

The aggregate mining industry is very tightly regulated in Alberta. Companies that mine aggregates must adhere to many environmental laws and regulations, including:

Equivalent Land Capability – Land must be reclaimed to a capability equal or better than prior to mining. This means your community benefits twice – first, with the use of local gravel, which is more economical and second, the community gets to enjoy the reclaimed land as a park, golf course, community centre, farm land, or many other uses.

Conservations and Reclamation Planning – Specific plans must be submitted to Alberta Environment regarding development details, conservation strategies, and reclamation plans for all aggregate mining proposals.

Operating Conditions – Your municipal district or county will set down how we manage and operate the aggregate pit including hauling routes, hours of operation, etc.

Did You Know?

A typical single family house uses about 160 tonnes (that's about 12 truck load) of gravel. You'll find it beneath the basement floor, as drainage rock around the foundation to prevent flooding, in the concrete walls, floors, steps, sidewalk, patio and driveway. Even your home's windows and stucco siding are made with sand!

Toothpaste contains talc, which is a product of aggregate mining.

Construction of the Father Michael Troy School in Edmonton, completed in 2003, required 29,000 tonnes of aggregate. Aggregate is needed for the concrete walls, floors, sidewalks, parking areas and any mortar work.

In one year, Alberta uses enough aggregate to build a wall around the entire province (that's 3,990 km), measuring 3.8 metres (12.5 ft) high by 1 metre (3.3 ft) thick!

Construction of a tall office tower uses more than 100,000 tonnes of aggregate, mainly in the concrete.

Gravel mining is a necessary but temporary use of land. You may also be surprised to learn that many of Alberta's golf courses, lakes, and parks, were once aggregate mining sites.

Resources

Facts and Information on Aggregate

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