Berkshire has been a significant producer of minerals for many years. The county is underlain by three main types of minerals – sand and gravel, chalk and clay – and each of these has been and continues to be extracted to meet society’s needs.
Until the 20th Century, chalk and clay were the main minerals produced, generally to meet very localised need. These minerals continue to be extracted, but now on a very small scale compared to sand and gravel. The chalk is mainly used as agricultural lime, and sometimes as ‘fill’. The clay was formerly used chiefly for tile making, but now it’s main use is to line waste sites to prevent the spread of pollution.
Since the Second World War, the main type of mineral production in the county has been of ‘aggregates’ for the construction industry. Substantial quantities of aggregate minerals are needed for all construction work – in the building or renovation of houses, schools, hospitals, roads, and so on. As an illustration of the scale of demand, it is believed that every new house built requires around 50 tonnes of aggregates. It is not surprising then that in the South East there is a huge demand for these products, which is not without cost to natural environment.
There is no doubt that the process of minerals/aggregate extraction can have major effects on the environment over a long period of time. This seems to be an ever-increasing issue within the county of Berkshire due to the many land designations aimed at preserving the special character of its countryside. It is these environmental impacts that continue to pose the greatest challenge to the Minerals Planning Authorities (MPA’s) within Berkshire; an issue tackled through the Policies of the Replacement Minerals Local Plan of Berkshire (RMLP and the emerging policies of the JMWLDF.
In simple terms one of the key aims and challenges of the RMLP and the emerging JMWLDF is to balance the need for mineral extraction with the environmental costs to the county as a whole.
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