VIRGINIA DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES PUBLICATION 62 MINERALS FOR VIRGINIA Harry W. Webb and John P. Moore COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF MINES, MINERALS AND ENERGY DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES Robert c. Milici, commissioner of Mineral Resources and state Geologist CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGIN IA 1985 VIRGINIA DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES PUBLICATION 62 MINERALS FOR VIRGINIA Harry W. Webb and John P. Moore COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF MINES, MINERALS AND ENERGY DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES Robert c. Milici, commissioner of Mineral Resources and state Geologist CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGIN IA 1 985 Front cover: Clockwise from upper left - Iocation of potential resouree; Extracting needed materials; Use for building eonstruction; Reclaimed pit used for erops. VIRGINIA DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES PUBLICATION 62 MINERALS FOR VIRGINIA Harry W. Webb and John P. Moore COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF MINES, MINERALS AND ENERGY DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES Robert c. Milici, commissioner of Mineral Resources and state Geologist CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGI NIA 1985 DEPARTMENT OF MINES, MINERALS AND ENERGY Richmond, Virginia O. GENE DISHNER, Director COMMONWEALTH OF VIRG]NIA DEPARTMENT OF PURCHASE AND SUPPLY RICHMOND 1985 Portions of this publication may be quoted if credit is given to the Division of Mineral Resources. It is recommended that reference to this report be made in the following form: Webb, H. W. and Moore, J. P., 1985, Minerals for Virginia: Virginia Division of Mineral Resources Publieation 62, 36 p. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Need for resources ......................1 Role in state and local economy .............. ..........................9 Economic development .................. .............8 Problems in developing resources .................. ..................8 Exploration and development .................. ......................9 Public acceptance and planning ............... ...............-....4 Marketing .............4 Mineral depletion .....................4 Resources development sequence ................b Exploration .................. .............b Development ................ .............6 Extraction ............7 Processing ........_...8 Product delivery .....................10 By-produets .......ll Reclamation ................. ...........11 Environmental safeguards ........... ..............L2 Permitting proeess ...................14 Land-use controls ......................16 Future uses of resources . .....1g Appendix I. General references on minerals and mineral resources ................ ......".19 II. References for resources commodities .................. .................21 Ill.Addressesofregulatoryageneies . .... ..21 IV. Mineral resourees section of the Fairfax County 1983 Comprehensive Plan .......29 V. Zoning status for mineral extraetion ...............g8 ILLUSTRATIONS Figure Page 1. Quarry operation with drilling rig preparing holes for blasting ......................1 2. Drag-line crane extraeting sand and gravel .................1 3. Interpreting data from aerial photographs .................. ......................5 4. Geologist recording information on rock type and deformation ........................5 5. Removal of soil and overburden by self-loading pan ............. ...........6 6. Hydroseeding newly eonstructed privacy berm .......... ......................6 7. Drilling of shot hole for blasting ..................7 8. Blasting granite ...........................7 9. Loading gravel from drag-line cable-crane into haul wagon ........8 10. Drag-line erane extracting gravel and sand .................8 11. Floating processing plant for sand and gravel .............9 12. Ioading of shot rock into truck ....................9 13. Primary roek crusher ................9 14. Primary crusher ..........................9 15. Firing of bricks in tunnel kiln ............ ..........9 16. Hydrosizer with Humphrey Spirals ..L0 17. Hand-splitting slate shingles ............... .......10 18. Stone center with various rocks for wall or patio eonstruction ........................11 19. Stoekpiles of erushed rock ............ ...............11 20. Ioading rail cars with crushed stone .......... ..................11 21. Barge transportation of gravel ...................11 22. House located in inactive quarry ...............12 23. Reelaimed gravel pit being used for wheat farming at historical Shirley Plantation .13 24. Reclaimed quarry being used for underwater demolition testing in the Lynchburg area ............ ..13 25. Berm with trees for visual and sound shielding of quarry ...........t4 26. BaS house to eontrol dust from crushed material ......I4 27. Water spraying of stone load to eontrol dust ............ .15 28. Settlement pond in quarry to keep adjacent streams clean and to serve as water source for dust suppression .....................15 29. Federal laws related to mining .17 TABLE Page List of Virginia's mineral resources ...................2 YOUR HOME AND THE MINERAL INDUSTRY1 The raw material for the majority of the material used in building your home was furnished by the mining industry. The foundation is probably concrete (limestone, clay, shale, gTpsum, and aggregate mining). The exterior walls may be made of brick (clay mining) or stone (dimension stone mining). The insulation in the walls may be glass wool (silica, feldspar, and trona mining) or expanded vermiculite (vermiculite mining). The interior walls are usually wallboard (gypsum mining). The lumber in the structure will be fastened with nails and screws (iron ore mining and zinc mining). If the roof is covered with asphalt shingles, the filler in the shingles is from a variety of colored silicate minerals from mining. Your fireplace is probably of brick or stone, lined with a steel box (iron ore mining). Your sewer piping is made of clay or iron pipe (clay mining or iron ore mining). Your water pipe is of iron or copper pipe (iron ore mining and copper mining). Your eleetrical wiring is of eopper or aluminum (copper mining or bauxite mining). Your sanitary faeilities are made of porcelain (clay mining). Your plumbing fixtures are made of brass (copper and zinc mining), or stainless steel (nickel and chrome mining). Your gutters are of galvanized steel (iron ore mining and zinc mining). The paint is manufactured with mineral fillers and pigments (from minerals obtained by mining). Your windows are made of glass (trona, siliea and feldspar mining). Your door knobs, loeks, and hinges are of brass or steel (copper, zinc, and iron ore mining). And finally, your mortgage is written on paper made from wood or cloth fibers, but fibers filled with elay (clay mining). l Modified fuom M'i,ning Engi,neeri,W, January 1976. The foregoing examples were cited by F. T.Davis, Western Regional Viee President, Soeietyof Mining Engineers. IN APPRECIATION The following assisted in the preparation of this report: James E. Fox, Virginia Aggregates Association Inc.; Robert C. Milici, Donald G Le Van, Palmer C. Sweet, Mark P. Phillips, Division of Mineral Resources; William O. Roller and staff, Division of Mined Land Reclamation, David E. Jordan, Department of Taxation; Wayne Richards, Department of Highways and Transportation; Renaldo C. Jenkins, Air Pollution Control Board; Larry G. Lawson, Water Control Board; Christopher E. Loftus, Department of Labor and Industry; Harry D. Childress, Division of Mines; Henry C. Bernick, III, Marine Resources Commission; John R. Knight, Department of Housing and Community Development; John Hutchison, Division of Urban and Environmental Planning, University of Virginia; Rosser Payne, private consultant; Rich Renniger and Paula Burns, National Crushed Stone Asso- ciation; and members of the various planning district commissions of the State. The plant tours, given be numerous members of the Virginia Aggregates Association Inc., to acquaint the authors with extractive processes and equipment are gratefully acknowledged. MINERALS FOR VIRGINIA Harry W. Webb and John P. Moore INTRODUCTION Virginia is rich in minerals--a natural wealth. The welfare and economic progress of the Com- monwealth has been largely dependent upon the discovery and production of rock and mineral resources since Colonial days. Mineral production in North America began with the settlement at Jamestown, where iron was produced'as early as 1609. The types and amounts of minerals used have varied since then, largely in response to the eco- nomic development of the State and Nation. Today a variety of natural rock materials are extracted from mines, pits, and quanies across the State for many uses (Map in Pocket). The purpose of this report is to describe industrial mineral develop- ment of the State, exclusive of fuels and metals, in terms understandable to the general reader. Virginia has a large and diverse mineral indus- Figure 1. Quarry operation with drilling rig pre- try. In 1985 some 249 producers were engaged in paring holes for blasting; in the background a providing valuable mineral commodities statewide. loaded 35-ton truck is on the way to the crusher. All of Virginia's counties have resources from which mineral commodities can be produced. There are some counties, however, in which minerals are not being extracted today. Production of industrial minerals in Virginia is a multimillion-dollar-a-year industry and in 1983, was valued at about $289,344,000. Many raw mineral materials are mined from quarries and pits (Figures 1 and 2). These openings in the ground mean different things to a wide variety of people. To consumers,