VTCA Aggregate Producers Play Whack-a-Mole with County Zoning Ordinances

VTCA Aggregate Producers have been playing a game of whack-a-mole with Virginia counties that have introduced ordinances or comprehensive plan amendments that make it harder, if not impossible, to permit mining sites within their jurisdictions. For the third time in the past six months, VTCA is addressing a county’s effort to amend their zoning to make it harder to obtain a mining permit in the County. The culprit: Caroline County.  
 
Caroline County is in the I-95 corridor, about halfway between Northern Virginia and Richmond, and has hard rock and extensive sand and gravel reserves.  
 
On March 14, 2023, a memo to the Caroline County Planning Commission from the Director, Planning & Community Development states the County “is currently working on creating a zoning district and standards for sand and gravel extraction and operations. During this time, staff feels it necessary to repeal the uses for sand and gravel/mineral extraction operations. TXT-05-023 will repeal Sand and Gravel Extraction and Sales from the Special Exception section of the RP (Rural Preservation) zoning district. TXT-06-023 will repeal Sand and Gravel Operations and Crushed Stone Operations from the Special Exception section of the M1 (industrial) zoning district.”   
 
VTCA got wind of these developments late last month and has gotten involved. Last week VTCA sent a letter to the Caroline County Director, Planning & Community Development, the Chair of the Planning Commission, and the Chair of the Board of Supervisors, overviewing the vital role aggregate mining plays in everyday life in communities and society. Our letter also requests a work session with the commission and a VTCA led panel of mining industry experts.  
 
As of the writing of this article, we have not yet heard back from Caroline County.  
 
Caroline County is the third county to attempt to restrict mining within their borders. The first was Frederick County, with an effort to remove mining from over 500 acres that had been earmarked for mineral extraction in the County’s comprehensive plan. The second was Buckingham County where in their effort to combat gold mining they introduced a zoning ordinance that eliminated “metallic mining” from all zoning districts.  
 
VTCA does not see the efforts in localities to restrict or eliminate mining going away, and this is something that the aggregate mining industry will face moving forward. VTCA encourages ALL Aggregate Members to formulate a plan to get to know your local elected officials and planning staff members. When these conflicts arise, it is beneficial that local decision makers already understand Virginia’s aggregate mining industry.  
 
Several years ago, VTCA developed the VTCA Aggregate Community Outreach Toolkit – A step-by-step guide to establishing and maintaining positive community relationships with templates and public education materials. Please reference this for ideas and tools on how to connect with local officials to provide a better understanding of our industry.  
 
Visit the VTCA Aggregate Producer Resources page.