I didn’t expect this in Texas.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has asked the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to halt approving permits for cement production plants in Texas until the 2025 legislative session.
As if it doesn’t take long enough to get a permit the way it is.
Patrick’s letter to TCEQ Chair Jon Niermann came after Patrick heard residents’ concerns over the proposed 600-acre cement plant and limestone quarry planned by Black Mountain Cement. The plant would be located in Dorchester, about 60 miles north of Dallas.
“I have great concerns about the permanent cement kiln proposed project in Grayson County. Business leaders, clergy, elected officials, community leaders and an overwhelming majority of the public have all voiced their objections to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) granting a permit to Black Mountain Cement for this project,” Patrick wrote.
Patrick’s letter stated that despite a TCEQ review that concluded the plant would pose “no air quality danger to the area,” the community remained unconvinced and questions the accuracy of the agency’s analysis.
“This is not a personal attack on Black Mountain Cement by the citizens or by me,” Patrick wrote. “The citizens simply don’t want a cement kiln plant near the heart of their community for many reasons.”
For its part, Black Mountain Cement is calling this “a modern and safe alternative to a major gap” that will serve as a next-generation cornerstone of cement production by addressing a regional shortage of supply to 1) Keep new residential, commercial, industrial and civil projects feasible, 2) Keep existing concrete producers’ supply chains more diverse and viable and 3) create hundreds of quality jobs and millions in new tax dollars for the surrounding communities.
“Black Mountain Cement has spent considerable time and resources to permit and engineer our plant to adhere to the strict regulations and statutes that exist today,” Black Mountain’s Jake Bender told the Herald Democrat in a letter. “As proud Texans, we want to see the same processes that allowed our state to thrive for the last several decades to continue to be followed.”
The market – especially in Texas – can certainly support additional cement resources, especially with today’s modern technology designed to reduce emissions. All parties need to work together to find a way to get this done.
Mark S. Kuhar, editor
[email protected]
(330) 722‐4081
X: @editormarkkuhar
