6 November, 2014

Dear Sir,

I’d like to put this dispute over planning permission for people who want to quarry slate into some perspective, so that the country doesn’t get the impression that the Planning Department is wilfully keeping homeowners from repairing their roofs.

The thing about these disused slate-cutting sites is that they are disused for a reason.

Without meaning to comment on any particular slate-cutting site, it is true to say in general that they can be dirty and noisy.

Population pressure in Bermuda has meant that nowadays, most of us live very close to our neighbours. There aren’t many distant neighbours left! That has put us in a 21st Century dilemma.

There is very little land left from which to take stone. These days, much quarrying is done on private property. But if I own a piece of land, and I want a quarrier to come and remove a hill that contains stone, and Planning gives permission, the moment the machinery starts up, the complaints start rolling in from people who live nearby. It can be an unpleasant experience on all sides, there’s no question.

What this means is that it has become particularly important for planners to make sure that homeowners are not disadvantaged by what goes on in their neighbourhoods.

Planners are prepared to fast-track applications because of the damage that has been done by these storms, but they are not prepared to completely abdicate their responsibilities.

The Minister said yesterday that planners who are asked to approve quarrying want to be sure they understand the lie of the land, to be sure that adjoining properties aren’t compromised. They want to be sure that adjoining foundations aren’t threatened, they want to be sure that dust and noise don’t make life living next door a misery, and they want to be sure that quarrying doesn’t cut so deep that the water table is compromised.

I think that is a reasonable and responsible position to take, and I note that once applications were received, they were processed in less than two days,

Life in tiny Bermuda does sometimes produce dilemmas that larger countries do not experience. If we are to live harmoniously together, we have to be intelligent about finding good solutions to awkward problems. Having said that, the Department of Planning, and those who have answered the call to reopen their quarry sites on private land should be commended.

I now call on those operators to charge a fair price to customers in this time of need.

Lynne Woolridge

Chairman of the One Bermuda Alliance