Returning from France by ferryboat at Dieppe, one sees a sand & gravel stock and processing yard on the quayside near the ferry terminal. Arriving in Newhaven in Sussex, one sees a number of marine aggregates wharves. Also, we saw recently, the Dredger pictured below after unloading.
Extraction of marine aggregates involves a very small proportion of the of the UK’s continental shelf – typically an area totalling some 140km2 every year. Yet it provides around a fifth of all the sand and gravel used in Britain and, significantly, over half what is required in London. The marine aggregate industry is an essential supplier to the construction industry and, through it, helps support the life of the nation.
Marine Trailing Arm Suction Dredger ARCO DEE
Hanson Aggregates Marine
Length overall 67.70m
Length bpp 64.00m
Breadth 13.00m
Depth 5.00m
Mean moulded draught 4.00m
Loading capacity 1,300 tonnes
Hopper capacity 750m3
Suction pipe diameter 450mm
Maximum Dredging Depth 30 metres
Total Power: 1375 Kw
ARCO DEE AT NEWHAVEN EAST QUAY
Sussex is similar to many other Coastal Counties in England and Wales where suitable aggregates construction materials cannot easily be found. Luckily, the sea bed of the English Channel is rich in deposits of sand and gravel materials, much of it flint and of a uniform consistency.
A sustainable aggregates production industry complements its local environment to provide natural mineral resources – a wealth from our land. Generally, mineral development and use may improve the environment in which we live and contribute to the economic health of the nation. Whether from our land or the sea bed around our shores the availability of construction materials has enabled and will continue to furnish the built civilisation we enjoy. Those counties which are unable to rely on sea dredged aggregates often benefit from the rich diversity of the geological structures of the British Isles such that local economic aggregates sources may be found and developed. Some resources lie beneath the local inland fresh-water table and are worked by small dredgers, others by more traditional open pits and quarries. We are not ‘all at sea’ in resources.
(Credit and Acknowledgement to the British Geological Survey; the MPA; Hanson Marine; IHC Holland.)
Extraction of marine aggregates involves a very small proportion of the of the UK’s continental shelf – typically an area totalling some 140km2 every year. Yet it provides around a fifth of all the sand and gravel used in Britain and, significantly, over half what is required in London. The marine aggregate industry is an essential supplier to the construction industry and, through it, helps support the life of the nation.
Marine Trailing Arm Suction Dredger ARCO DEE
Hanson Aggregates MarineLength overall 67.70m
Length bpp 64.00m
Breadth 13.00m
Depth 5.00m
Mean moulded draught 4.00m
Loading capacity 1,300 tonnes
Hopper capacity 750m3
Suction pipe diameter 450mm
Maximum Dredging Depth 30 metres
Total Power: 1375 Kw
ARCO DEE AT NEWHAVEN EAST QUAY
Sussex is similar to many other Coastal Counties in England and Wales where suitable aggregates construction materials cannot easily be found. Luckily, the sea bed of the English Channel is rich in deposits of sand and gravel materials, much of it flint and of a uniform consistency.
A sustainable aggregates production industry complements its local environment to provide natural mineral resources – a wealth from our land. Generally, mineral development and use may improve the environment in which we live and contribute to the economic health of the nation. Whether from our land or the sea bed around our shores the availability of construction materials has enabled and will continue to furnish the built civilisation we enjoy. Those counties which are unable to rely on sea dredged aggregates often benefit from the rich diversity of the geological structures of the British Isles such that local economic aggregates sources may be found and developed. Some resources lie beneath the local inland fresh-water table and are worked by small dredgers, others by more traditional open pits and quarries. We are not ‘all at sea’ in resources.
(Credit and Acknowledgement to the British Geological Survey; the MPA; Hanson Marine; IHC Holland.)
