Introduction

Description

Aggregate resources include any combination of sand, gravel, or crushed stone in a natural or processed state. Aggregates are used in the construction of highways as well as residential, industrial and institutional buildings.

The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is responsible for the management of aggregate resources located on provincial Crown Lands. DNR’s mandate is to protect and optimize the use and availability of these mineral aggregate resources in the best interest of the people of New Brunswick.

Legislation

The Minister of the Department of Natural Resources, through the Quarriable Substances Act and Regulation 93-92, has the authority to manage tenure, exploration, development and production of aggregates on Crown Lands and on any private lands that lie within 300 metres, seaward or shoreward, of the ordinary high water mark.

The Crown Land Quarries Policy  provides details on how the resource is managed from the following perspective:

• aggregate supply
• protection of natural and social environments
• reclamation
• effective administrative and legal framework

Aggregate Inventory

The New Brunswick Granular Aggregate Inventory Program was initiated in 1974 in order to identify alternative sources for concrete sand in the Moncton area to replace traditional sources coming from provincial coastal beaches. The inventory program was then extended to remainder of the province. The field mapping and sampling part of the program was completed in 1986. Mapping was based on the federal 1:50 000 scale National Topographic System (NTS).

The series of Granular Aggregate Reports cover the entire land area of the Province. Individual reports covering one or more NTS maps are generally based on the following format:

• A brief description of the bedrock and surficial geology of the study area.
• A description of the types and general characteristics of the granular aggregate deposits present.
• Appendices containing section descriptions, the results of mechanical grain-size and lithological analyses; and
• Estimated recoverable reserve volumes for specific deposits.