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Lehigh was kind enough to give some NEWCAP members a tour of the conveyor.
We started the tour at McKinstrys Mill Rd. The conveyor goes under the road and 2 streams. Temporary stream beds were constructed until the project was completed. When the project is concluded, all streams will be put back to their original condition. This includes placing rocks, wood, trees and shrubs in and along the stream bed that would have been there before the project started. There was considerable blasting needed to get deep enough for the conveyor to go under McKinstrys Mill Rd.
We continued along the route to Winters Church Rd. Along the route we saw several sediment/storm water ponds that had been constructed. Storm water ponds play an important role in controlling pollution in the Chesapeake Bay. We were told that there would be ample mitigation along the conveyor where it is above ground. Especially in areas that would affect the view of neighboring homes.
We had a chance to walk into the tunnel on Winters Church road and see where the conveyor would travel. The conveyor will be a belt woven with wire mesh able to go up and down grades and make slow turns. The belt will be 9 miles long (4 miles in each direction). The conveyor will be underground almost 2 miles allowing for farming over the top of the conveyor in that area. The deepest cut will be at Greenwood Church Road where the conveyor will be 75 feet deep.
We then traveled to the New Windsor Quarry where we were shown where the storage and repair stations would be located. We than moved on to see where the conveyor would begin and where the transfer station would be located. We also saw where the north quarry and the South quarry are located.
This is a very huge undertaking and from what we observed, Lehigh has selected a very competent company to complete the project. The Fay Company is charged with the responsibility of completing the project. Several members noted how well the roads were kept clean with trucks that watered down roads. We were also impressed by the safety procedures that were in place. The sheer size of the project was overwhelming. We figured they must have several million dollars of equipment on this job and a very large work force. It is our understanding that the project is slightly ahead of schedule even with the winter heavy rains.
We would like to thank Kent Martin, Frank Tedesdo and Andy Rigler for taking time out of their busy schedule to give us a tour and update on this project. It was a special learning experience.
