In May 2017, Environment Canterbury invited tenders to develop a Monitoring Programme in Yaldhurst around a number of quarries. Mote and partner companies were selected as the preferred partner.
Quarry Compliance Monitoring
The monitoring had two purposes:
(i) Health: Determine the levels of respirable crystalline silica (RCS) at residences in close proximity to the quarries in Yaldhurst, and
(ii) Research: Characterise the nature of particulate and RCS by measuring short-term (hourly) particulate levels in conjunction with (longer-term) RCS and measuring different size fractions of particulate at multiple locations.
A network of 24 monitoring stations across nine sites were operated between December 2017 and July 2018 for a variety of parameters including PM10, PM2.5, RCS and various meteorological measurements including wind speed and direction, rainfall, air temperature and pressure. The data capture rates were in excess of 96% over the monitoring period. Environment Canterbury have used the data as part of an active management program to manage regional quarry emissions.