The community’s opposition to the proposed quarry lease continues to grow, with over 1300 signatures already gathered on paper and online petitions. MADCA encourages everyone to sign the petition, which demonstrates strong community concern about the quarry operations and their impact. Paper petitions are available at Mapleton Library. An online petition as available at the following link:
Following community pressure, the Sunshine Coast Regional Council (SCRC) agreed to pause the lease process and had scheduled a community presentation by the Hinterland Quarries Action Group (HQAG) for August 15th. This was to be followed by a SCRC staff presentation on August 29th, but the SCRC has unexpectedly postponed this to October 9th. In response, the HQAG have requested that their presentation be rescheduled to a date closer to the Council’s.
The SCRC has extended the EOI timeline from December 2023 to June 2024 in response to community concerns. The closing date for expressions of interest was the end of November 2023. The council had initially planned to lease the quarries by June 30, 2023, but due to community concerns, the process was delayed. The council's decision to proceed and way the council released the submission was widely criticised for not allowing the community time to understand or appeal the decision.
The Hinterland Quarry Action Group (HQAG), a community-based organisation, has been actively advocating for community consultation, transparency, and safety in the quarry development process. The HQAG has also raised concerns about potential disparities in treatment between council-owned quarries and privately-owned counterparts under the existing zoning scheme. They argue that this will likely give planning, development, operational, and commercial advantages to private entities, and they are advocating for an equitable playing field for both public and private quarry operations
The SCRC’s initial decision to release EOI packages for the Dulong and Image Flat quarries in September 2023 sparked controversy among Blackall Range residents. The council's decision, which was made with only one business hours’ notice, was met with disappointment and anger, especially since the council had previously informed the HQAG that the release was on hold pending review of a detailed community submission supported by organisations such as Organisation of Sunshine Coast Association Residents (OSCAR), the Sunshine Coast Environment Council (SCEC) and MADCA.
The EOI documents indicate that the council is considering a partnership with a commercial operator to manage and expand the quarry operations. This has raised concerns among the HQAG and residents about potential increases in noise, traffic, dust, and blasting impacts.
The EOI also suggests the possibility of reopening the old asphalt plant at Image Flat, which was closed in 2020 due to non-compliant toxic air emissions. (In a similar situation in the US, a controversial asphalt plant in the city of Irvine was shut down after the city agreed to purchase the property to convert it into a 700-acre open space preserve. This decision came after a long history of complaints from residents about odours from the plant.)
The SCRC’s says its decision to lease its quarry business to a commercial operator was made after a strategic review of the operation of the two quarries to help decide its future operating model and budget deliberations. The council aims to lease the quarry sites to a commercial operator by June 30.
The HQAG, advocates for community consultation and transparency in the quarry development process and has been actively addressing these issues. In August 2023, the group established an inaugural management committee in preparation for incorporation. The group continues to represent the interests of hinterland residents, visitors, and the natural environment to the Council and is seeking additional volunteers.
The SCRC’s decision to lease its quarry business to a commercial operator from mid-2023 raised concerns within the community about potential impacts: including the frequency of blasting, dust and noise pollution, road damage and safety, property damage, environmental impacts on waterways and native animals, and potential negative effects on local property values and lifestyle.
In response to these concerns, the community formed the Dulong Quarry Action Group, which later changed its name to the Hinterland Quarry Action Group (HQAG) to better represent both the Dulong and Image Flat quarries. The HQAG has made significant progress since January 2023, addressing key issues such as the council's EOI process, action group issues, quarry operations, and concerns about water discharge from the Dulong quarry.
The HQAG has also been advocating for community consultation and addressing concerns about the Sunshine Coast Regional Council's plans to seek expressions of interest from private industry for quarry operations. The group has sought legal advice on these plans and is working towards incorporating as a not-for-profit group. Until then, the group is a sub-group of the Mapleton and District Community Association (MADCA).
In May 2023, the Sunshine Coast Regional Council initiated a planned six-week rock transport from Dulong to Image Flat. While most truck drivers displayed good behaviour, some concerns were reported, including speeding, uncovered loads, crossing centre lines on corners, and excessive noise.
Since then, the HQAG has been actively addressing safety concerns related to increased truck movements due to quarry operations. They emphasise the importance of community engagement and encourage reporting of any observed concerns regarding quarry or truck activities to the Sunshine Coast Regional Council's Customer Services.
Concerns were also raised about the Sunshine Coast Regional Council pumping out a significant volume of stormwater from the Dulong pit, directly discharging it into the upper South Maroochy River, causing discoloration. The council said that the incident was not related to quarry operations but to a sediment control product being used on the Dulong School Road.
The council quarries at Dulong and Image Flat have been operating for over 50 years producing basalt and rhyolite.
Basalt is a common extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of basaltic lava and is rich in iron and magnesium. The basalt extracted from the Dulong quarry is utilised to produce asphalt, bitumen, and concrete aggregate, which are important components for road surfacing and construction.
Rhyolite is an igneous rock with a high silica content and is formed from the rapid cooling of magma or lava rich in silica. Rhyolite from the Image Flat quarry is used for various construction applications such as building facades and as an aggregate in concrete.
Community members can get involved in the quarry development process in the Sunshine Coast region in several ways:
By participating in these ways, you ensure that your concerns and interests are considered.
The council's decision without any public engagement caused concern throughout the local and wider community. It was not at all clear whether the council would have any control over the quarries operations once they had been leased. Trucking rates had not been determined by the council. There were other concerns such as the blast frequency, impact of dust, noise, road damage, road sefety, property damage, environmental impacts to waterways, native animals, and the negative effects on local properties such as land prices and lifestyle. Residents and road users from Nambour to Mapleton and beyond would all potentially be affected.
The community in the immediate vicinity formed the Dulong Quarry Action Group which included residents from Image Flat. The first meeting took place on the 14th January 2023 in the Kureelpa Hall. Following this, a second meeting took took place on the 9th February 2023 with both Councillor David Law, Division 10, and Rob Skelton MP attending.
The Sunshine Coast council held three public drop-in information sessions on the 19th April in Nambour.
More Information about HQAGConcerns were raised by residents that the Sunshine Coast Regional Council had begun pumping out a significant volume of stormwater from the Dulong pit, directly discharging it into the upper South Maroochy River causing discolouration. Concerns about water quality were raised, prompting reports to the council and the Department of Environment and Science Pollution Hotline. Councillor David Law pursued the availability of water testing data to address community concerns. The council confirmed the incident was not to do with quarry operations but to do with a sediment control product being used on the Dulong School Road. Whilst the product was environmentally friendly, control measures were put in place. The full report from the council is provided below:
More Information about HQAGHowever, the Dulong quarry continued pumping water from the quarry into Dulong Creek resulting in high visual turbidity. Explanations have been requested from both the Sunshine Coast Regional Council and the Qld Department of Environment.
To remain up todate please follow the Hinterland Quarry Action Group on Facebook or or email your contact details to: aveivers@iprimus.com.au
The following documents have been shared by the Dulong Quarry Action Group:
Truck Calculations 2023 Community Concerns Presented to MADCA - Feb 2023The information and views expressed on these pages may not reflect the views of the MADCA, its officers, those involved with maintaining the website or the members of the MADCA. The MADCA reserves the right to review, edit and/or delete as appropriate. If you have corrections or want to suggest updates to any of our articles, we would be happy to hear from you. Please contact communications@madca.com.au. Please note that we may not always be able to respond in a timely manner.
