San Rafael Rock Quarry Committee

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The San Rafael Rock Quarry operates a substantial mining operation in the Peacock Gap neighborhood (see Quarry Background and Quarry Photos from 1987 to the present). Since its inception, the SRRQ Committee of the Pt. San Pedro Road Coalition has focused much of its attention and resources to encouraging the Quarry to conduct its operations in a safe and legal manner that does not unduly impact the surrounding community. A big SRRQ part of this process has been prodding the County of Marin to adequately discharge its responsibility to regulate the Quarry’s operations, which it has failed to do over the years. Since its acquisition by the Dutra Group in 1986, Quarry operators have exploited ineffective oversight from the County, the Quarry’s principal regulator.

The result has been an expanded, illegal mine in the heart of a major residential area that is nothing close to a “best practices” operation and that may be exposing residents to dangerous levels of toxic air contaminants, in particular, crystalline silica and diesel fumes. While residents living close to the Quarry could have been more vocal in protesting Quarry indiscretions, that does not give the Quarry the right or authority to exceed its legal operating limitations.

Google Earth view of the San Rafael Rock Quarry:

The founding of the Coalition and, thus, the SPRQ Committee was generated by the community's need to address environmental fallout from the Quarry Operation (see Committee Objectives). As a result of the Committee's efforts, the Marin County Superior Court issued a ruling on the operations of the Quarry. That, in turn, resulted in the County of Marin requiring an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for an amended reclamation plan (ARP) for the Quarry. In submitting an ARP to the County, the Quarry also decided to submit an Amended Operating Permit as well. Both submissions were combined by the County into a single EIR. Check the Quarry News page for the latest information.

For contact information of Marin County agencies regarding the Quarry (complaints, comments, etc.), go to the Marin County Contacts page. For details about the legal and administrative challenges to the Quarry's operations, please refer to these links:

Legal Challenges to the Quarry

January 1, 2004: Findings by Judge Sutro, Marin County Superior Court, on lawsuit filed by the the State of California against the San Rafael Rock Quarry etal. (Background on the lawsuit).
April 6, 2004: Order by Judge Sutro, Marin County Superior Court, on State of California lawsuit.
August 9, 2004: Order by Judge Sutro, Marin County Superior Court, provides for "interim operating conditions" that are to apply at least until the Quarry's operating permit is amended (see Administrative Challenges).
January 17, 2007: A full transcript of the Status Conference in front of Judge John Sutro, Jr., Marin County Superior Court. Judge Sutro called the San Rafael Rock Quarry to task as a "bad neighbor" and causing a "substantial problem" for the residents of the area. He said that it might be "time to allow these people some relief in court". Further legal action is pending completion of the Environmental Impact Report and County Board of Supervisors actions (see Administrative Challenges below).

Administrative Challenges to the Quarry

The Marin County Contacts page provides the addresses, emails and related information to submit complaints, comments, etc.

June 6, 2001: Marin County Civil Grand Jury report titled Who's Minding the San Rafael Rock Quarry? (scan down to the June 6, 2001 entry)
January 29, 2009: The Final Environmental Impact Report (FEIR) was released for public review and the public review period ended 45 day later.
March 16, 2009: The Coalition Response to the FEIR was submitted challenging its contents as inadequate, incomplete and containg serious errors.
June 2, 2009: The Coalition submitted a Position Paper to the Marin County Board of Supervisors stating that the FEIR was deeply flawed and that it could not support the FEIR's certification. The paper further identified changes to the FEIR that could win Coalition approval.
August 14, 2009: Marin County released a document titled San Rafael Rock Quarry Final EIR Response to Comments Amendment (Large PDF file - recommended for broadband use only).
August 25, 2009: Marin County Board of Supervisors public hearing on the Amended Quarrying Permit (AQP) portion of the FEIR.
October 27, 2009: Marin County Board of Supervisors public hearing on the Amended Reclamation Plan (ARP) of the Final EIR. The BOS voted to certify the Final EIR.
Spring 2010: The BOS will conduct public hearing on the "Merits of the Project" which will determined what conditions and restrictions will be imposed on the Quarry's operations permit and reclamation plan.

If you would like to volunteer to help on the Committee, or otherwise contact the Coalition with questions or comments about the Quarry, please use the SRRQ Committee's contact form. We urge you to donate to the Coalition to help fund Quarry-related matters. Committee members have had a continuous stream of Quarry issues to address, many of which require technical input from compensated experts. To contribute, please go to the Donate page. If you wish to restrict your donation to Quarry-related expenses, please be sure to indicate that restriction during the donation process.

The Committee encourages you to register any complaints you have about the Quarry to:
Berenice Davidson, PE
Marin County Department of Public Works
Marin Civic Center
3501 Civic Center Drive
San Rafael, CA 94903
Phone: (415) 499-3770
Fax: (415) 499-3799
Email: BDavidson@co.marin.ca.us

If you could copy your complaint and paste it into the Message field of the Quarry Committee's Contact Form, that would be appreciated so we can keep track. If you mail your complaint, please send us a copy at our address in the left column.



Photos ©2005/2006 Hal Lauritzen