Monaro Rock Quarry Project

Refer Attached

I wish to Object to the proposed Monaro Rock Quarry Project application number SSD-27223807.
The objection is based on the following:
1. 150 laden trucks per day means 300 truck entry/exists per day for 30 years, given that trucks create most of the airborne dust this will be a health hazard especially on windy days it’s too close to the B23 Monaro highway.
2. Williamsdale quarry is only a few Kilometres from where I live and the dust level is greater than they estimated in their application this is demonstrated by the dust levels found on outdoor furniture etc. especially when it rains, with two sites this will increase and there are no checks, post approval to monitor.
3. Royalla Solar Farm is also too close to the quarry; the dust level will reduce the panels performance over the 30 years.
4. Stock piles of stone will be visible as they are at the Williamsdale quarry where quarried material has been deposited above the hillside and is increasing every year.
5. If successful it will be another eyesore spoiling another area of Fauna and Flora while a few reap the benefits the many lose out through health, house and land depreciation.
6. The operating hours 06.00 Hrs to 18.00 Hrs will increase the already high level of animal mortality let alone the increased noise and light pollution from headlamps during Winter.

After being in the construction industry for over 20 years and learning about silica dust and its harm to people it’s a silly idea,
There already 2 quarries in approximately a 5 kilometre radius, to me it’s all about money at everyone else’s cost. The community should not be exposed to a third quarry and its environmental impacts within such a small area

There has been so much said about the noise, dust, silica, water use, pollution, odour, electricity interruptions and more but from my personal perspective I am really concerned about the traffic with hundreds of loaded and unloaded trucks pounding the roads. The Monaro Highway and Old Cooma Road are in a disgraceful state as it is.
I have been running Learner Driver Courses for over 25 years and have taught dozens of people to drive. I am not a professional Driving Instructor but work closely with a company regarded as the best in the business.
My method of teaching these Learners is as follows :-
I start them off driving around my property of 10 acres, then after a number of lessons we drive around the Royalla Estate. This can take anumber of lessons but when I feel they are competent, we enter Old Cooma Road, turn off into Mt Campbell then back to Old Cooma Road until we reach the Monaro Highway. We will then either head north into Canberra southern suburbs or return to my property at Royalla.
There is no way I could do this if there were hundreds of trucks on these roads as proposed with this industrial quarry. It would be unsafe and it would greatly affect my contribution for Learner Drivers.
I hope this proposal fails once and for all.

I am writing in strong support of the proposed Monaro Rock Quarry development.

This project represents a significant opportunity for our region, both economically and socially. By establishing a local source of high-quality rock, our Canberra community and surrounding areas will no longer need to rely so heavily on material being transported from interstate. This not only ensures greater security of supply but also reduces transport costs and the environmental impacts associated with long-distance haulage.

The quarry will directly create multiple new jobs and provide flow-on benefits through local businesses that support the project. Both companies behind this proposal have a proven track record of employing local people and contributing to our community. Their ongoing success translates directly into stronger employment outcomes, economic stability, and greater opportunities for families across Queanbeyan–Palerang and the wider ACT region.

In addition, having such a modern and well-managed plant within our council area will position Queanbeyan–Palerang as a leader in sustainable resource development. This project will strengthen our local economy, enhance regional self-sufficiency, and provide lasting benefits for years to come.

For these reasons, I fully support the approval and development of the Monaro Rock Quarry

The suburb I reside is in close enough proximity to the project to be impacted. I echo the concerns already presented to you: The construction of a quarry in an established E2 Environmental conservation area, blasting weakening the foundations of homes within 5km of the site, use of groundwater, and the concern of silica dust.
If we start letting companies operate in conservation areas, what is the point of establishing conservation sites? The legislation is then worth about as much as the paper it's printed on.
I recently bought this place with my Fiancee, and the draw to it was how peaceful the area is. Imagine my dismay when I hear we may hear the blasting from a quarry for the next 30 years. This is going to disrupt all the local wildlife, and the domestic life. Such as my cat, who has only just starting purring since moving out of the Tuggeranong city centre. I am also beset on all sides of my property by dogs, so I am dreading the cacophony that will come with each blast. Further, I saw there would be shockwaves from the blasts up to 5km out from the site. 5km doesn't sound like much, but it catches Theodore ACT in the radius. I'm not going to pretend to know how frequently one blasts in a quarry, but I do have concerns that homes within the vibration radius will be negatively impacted from prolonged exposure.
Regarding the groundwater use, we are in prime bushfire territory. If a majority of our groundwater is going to the quarry, what's left for the bushfire efforts? We can say "If the bushfire comes," but let's be honest with ourselves: "When the bushfire comes." We don't have so much groundwater that we can afford both bushfire resistance efforts and cutting stone.
We in Canberra are in a valley. Anything that blows in on the wind has a habit of settling here and never leaving. It's why we're horrendous for hayfever. I am concerned about the silica dust settling in. We can have in our reports "It's well below acceptable levels" all we want, but instead of acceptable levels I would like ideal levels of silica dust in the air. Which is zero. I don't need to tell you that 30 years is a long time to be exposed to anything. I could hang out in "acceptable levels" of radiation, but I think most would advise I don't do it for 30 years. I also have a fiancee that is immunocompromised and has asthma in the family; She would be something of a canary in the mine and I would rather not have her suffer.
Finally, I would like to make clear: I do not care about property values. I don't. I do care than the place remains standing, the air is clear, and the area is quiet and peaceful after 30 years. I believe in my heart that this quarry would undo that. I implore you to reconsider this project. I'm sure there's perfectly good stone somewhere that will be less disruptive to acquire.

As a resident living close to this project in Gordon ACT, I am concerned local residents will be exposed up health risks caused by air born silica. The estimated average of 95 trucks per day with entry via the Monaro Highway is also concerning, on an already congested and dangerous road. This project is too close to residential areas and will cause financial loss to Royalla Home owners.

The project will harm significant wildlife and protected species in the area. It will also cause significant disruption to nature and the local community in that area. I would not like to see a short term quarry built there that will affect centuries old flora and fauna including the protected legless lizard.

We chose to purchase in a rural residential area in 2009 where we could have nature, silence, watch our children develop and grow organic vegetables and cattle. I have reviewed the project information; I disagree with the quarry and have several concerns with their EIS.

Need? Monaro Rock has not proved there is a need for an additional quarry. The Monaro Rock EIS asserts that the existing quarries in the greater ACT area can only meet supply for 13 years yet it later states that the ‘quantity of reserve rock held by operating quarries are not published and generally treated as confidential.’ Without independently verified evidence that the quarry is required, within a specific timeline, for a need in NSW, it should not be considered.

Traffic. The figures of 2021 are not valid and provide a distorted view of the volume of traffic using Old Cooma Road and then turning onto Monaro Highway. The traffic data was collected in 2021 when Googong township was only part way through its growth. Since 2021 there has been considerable growth in Googong, Mt Burra and Mt Campbell and a marked increase in the number of vehicles using Old Cooma Road. I can attest to the increased traffic as it takes several minutes to wait for a gap in the traffic to safely leave my driveway at 0815 each morning.

The following excerpts from public websites indicate the scale and growth of the Googong area:
‘The masterplan for the [Googong] township is well underway and includes give connected neighbourhoods set to host around 18,000 people in 6,500 homes over the next 15 years. Work on the second neighbourhood, Googong Central, begain in 2018 with infrastructure to support the growing region and 1,800 homes for 4,500 residents. Googong North is already home to more than 2,500 people.’ (Invest in Googong near Queenbeyan, a new community | DPN)
‘In addition to the hotel milestone, a site has now been settled for the Town Centre’s main retail centre with Coles Group Property Developments. The retail centre will feature a Coles supermarket and more than 20 specialty stores. Once complete, the Town Centre will also include a medical centre, gym, library, community centre, petrol station, childcare, and more, creating a one stop destination for both residents and visitors. These significant advancements come as Googong, which celebrated its 10th anniversary over the last year, continues to expand. The township is now home to over 8,000 people with over 18,000 at expected at completion.’ (GOOGONG HOTEL COMMENCES CONSTRUCTION)

Quarry heavy vehicles exit directly onto Monaro Highway. Allowing the quarry traffic to exit directly onto the Monaro Highway will relieve pressure on Old Cooma Road. However, I foresee that the NSW Government will approve the quarry, but the ACT Government will not approve direct access to the Monaro Highway. Monaro Rock will then send 25 truck and trailers per day on Old Cooma Road at 100km/hr from 0600-1700 six days a week. As the houses along Old Cooma Road have driveways which exit directly onto Old Cooma Road, the increased risk of vehicle accident will be very high as the heavy quarry vehicles will not be able to stop quickly as residential cars emerge from their hidden driveways. The children need to cross Old Cooma Road to catch the bus to and from school, and increased traffic, particularly heavy vehicle traffic poses a risk to the children’s safety. Direct access onto the Monaro Highway for quarry traffic must be a mandatory requirement of any approval of the quarry.

Noise / Blasting/ Vibration. The proposed quarry will decimate the silence of our rural lifestyle with explosions. I live within two kilometers of the proposed quarry and the dynamite blasting in the quarry will be triggering for my husband and I who have completed multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan where we endured rockets and explosions. We were very conscious of the requirement to reside in a quiet neighbourhood when we bought out house in 2009. We considered the impact of the two rock quarries in Williamsdale and Queanbeyan, looked at prevailing winds, hills and valleys before deciding to purchase. The Monaro Rock EIS acknowledges that noise cannot be mitigated for those of us who live closest to the proposed quarry.

Bird life. This noise, blast and vibration will disrupt the native birds who live in Royalla or seasonally move through the area. We have cultivated tree shelter belts on our acreage and a garden free from fox and cats to allow the birds a sanctuary. Monaro Rock will destroy this.

Dust / Rain water / Tank water. The Monaro Rock EIS acknowledges that the impact of dust cannot be mitigated for those of us who live closest to the proposed quarry. The Monaro Rock EIS states that ‘changes to the conditions necessary for a clean, reliable water supply may disproportionately affect their lifestyle.’ Monaro Rock is referring to the dust that they will generate, which will land on our roofs and sheds and then collect in our rainwater tanks. It is not a ‘lifestyle’ to collect rainwater to drink, it is function of living in a residential area that has not been supported with town water or town sewage. My family and our animals drink this water, and it will be a considerable and unreasonable expense to buy water from somewhere else in NSW and have it driven to our house. Clothes will not be able to be hung in the fresh air, rather will need to be dried inside using a dryer. Will our vegetables be safe to eat and what of the impact on the grass which our cattle eat? It is unreasonable to minimise and dismiss this significant impact on our lives and our wallets.

The Monaro Rock Social Impact EIS identified that Royalla has a strong community spirit based on our quiet, rural, environmentally friendly existence. The Monaro Rock EIS has not proven there is a requirement to build the quarry, they have not mitigated the dust and noise pollution, and they will increase heavy traffic in the area. The noise and disruption from the Monaro Rock quarry will destroy our piece of heaven and we deserve better treatment. The quarry should not be approved.

Like many Royalla residents (many of whom have joined together), I am in opposition to the proposed quarry. The reason are the same as the materials that have been published by advocacy groups - unreasonable traffic impact on the Monaro Highway, silica dust pollution as a health risk to residents - especially the elderly adults in my household as well as my 4yo daughter, the fact that this would mostly benefit ACT (not NSW) residents, reduction in property values and overall nuisance. I implore you to respond to massive community opposition (we've not heard of one person in favour) and cancel this project as soon as possible.

I wish to register my strong objection to the proposed quarry development near Googong. While I understand the importance of sourcing materials for construction, this location is highly unsuitable and would cause significant harm to the surrounding community.

Googong is one of the fastest-growing communities in the region, with thousands of residents already living here and many more moving in each year. Families have chosen Googong for its natural setting, schools, and community lifestyle. The addition of another quarry so close to the township is incompatible with this residential environment. The community already lives with the effects of existing quarries in the surrounding district, and the cumulative burden of yet another facility is unreasonable.

One of the most pressing concerns is traffic. Quarry operations will require a large number of truck movements every day. This will increase congestion on roads not designed for such heavy use, raise the risk of accidents involving families and schoolchildren, and contribute to noise, vibration, and dust along transport routes. Residents already experience truck traffic from nearby operations, and this project would make the situation significantly worse.

Health impacts are another serious issue. Dust emissions from quarrying can contain fine particles that travel downwind into residential areas. These particles can worsen asthma and other respiratory conditions, especially for children and the elderly. With Googong located in the path of prevailing winds, it is likely that dust would be carried directly into homes, schools, and recreational areas. Residents should not have to accept increased health risks simply because of where they live.

The cumulative effect of multiple quarries around Googong must be considered. Each quarry adds more dust, more traffic, and more loss of amenity. Taken together, these impacts erode the liveability of the town and diminish the quality of life for families who chose to settle here. Googong was planned and marketed as a vibrant, family-friendly community surrounded by natural beauty. Allowing yet another quarry undermines this vision and damages community trust in the planning system.

For these reasons, I believe the proposal is entirely unsuitable for its intended location. The impacts on traffic, health, and community amenity are too great, especially when added to the existing burden from surrounding quarries. There are other locations in the region where industrial-scale quarrying would be far more appropriate and where impacts on residents would be significantly lower.

I respectfully urge the Department to reject this proposal and protect the health, safety, and liveability of the Googong community.

I object categorically to this project. My reasoning is in the attachment.

My name is Gary Slater. I am a permanent resident of Australia on a Global Talent Visa residing in Royalla at a home I purchased in Jan 2025. I intend to live in Australia with my family of 5 at this residence indefinitely for many years to come. I moved to Australia, to the ACT region, and specifically to Royalla intentionally for the unmatched work-life balance, opportunities, quality of life, sense of community, and rural lifestyle that makes the greater ACT region and Royalla in particular a high quality of life area to work, live, and raise a family.

I object to the proposed Monaro Rock Quarry as an assessment of the EIS clearly indicates it will negatively impact the quality of life of surrounding residents including myself and my family.

I have relocated 10 times in the last 15 years in pursuit of a better life and greater opportunities for myself and my family - and I won't hesitate to move again for those same reasons. We moved to Royalla deliberately, purchasing a home and paying significant stamp duties in the process. Since moving to Australia I have founded two companies, hired workers, and pay both corporate and personal income taxes at some of the highest rates among OECD nations, contributing to the tax base and economic vitality of the region. If the negative externalities and unintended negative impacts of this project reduce property values, degrade quality of life and contribute to environmental degradation, result in extensive roadworks and excess traffic contributing to lost productivity and increased safety hazards I will be forced to consider relocating and taking my substantial contribution to the local economy and tax base with me.

My family and I commute to work, school, church, shopping, and sporting activities along the Monaro Highway and Old Cooma Road multiple times daily, every day of the week. Safe, efficient, and assured access to these major thoroughfares is a critical component of many aspects of our daily lives. The current road construction on the Monaro Highway, whilst important for the future development of the region, has added significant time, cost, and additional safety impacts to local residents including my family already. The proposed road expansions and extensive trafficking in heavy vehicles required in support of the Monaro Rock Quarry will undoubtedly add tremendous strain to the area's infrastructure and transportation capacity. The cumulative negative impact of roadworks,changed traffic patterns, heavy vehicle traffic, wear and tear on existing and new roads and bridges will lead to degraded quality of life for local residents and reputational damage to the area which will contribute to population exodus, reduced land values, and a declining tax base. It will make Royalla and surrounding areas less attractive and rewarding for current and future residents and will undoubtedly have a series of unintended consequences that the local governments of both the ACT and NSW should consider and conclude that the cost-benefit analysis is not in favour of the quarry going forward.

As an Australian permanent resident and aspiring citizen I admire Australia's democratic government and the voice residents and citizens are afforded. I also appreciate the ability of local taxpayers and voters to hold local governments and elected officials accountable for their decisions and how those decisions impact the freedom and quality of life of their electorates. I look forward to living in Royalla, voting in Federal, state, and local elections, and paying even more taxes for many decades to come. I urge the policy making elected officials of all jurisdictions impacted by the proposed Monaro Rock Quarry to vote NO and not approve the quarry for further development. Your local community will thank you.

Respectfully submitted,
Gary Slater

The quarry is unnecessary when there are others in the area. This area is amongst a growing residential community and I object to the additional trucks in our roads as well as having serious concerns on health impacts

Formal Objection to Proposed Quarry Development

I am writing to formally oppose the proposed quarry development in our community. My family and I moved to Royalla to embrace the rural lifestyle, peace, and natural beauty that this area offers. The proposed quarry would irreversibly damage these values and bring significant risks to our community’s safety, health, and environment.

1. Loss of Rural Lifestyle and Community Amenity

We chose to live in this rural area to enjoy the tranquility and serenity that comes with living away from industrial and high-density urban areas. The introduction of constant quarrying activities will drastically and permanently alter our way of life.

- Blasting will bring disruptive explosions and vibrations that will echo for kilometres, disturbing residents and causing unnecessary stress.
- Continuous truck traffic and machinery noise will destroy the peaceful environment we moved here to enjoy.
- The visual impact of an open quarry will reduce the natural beauty of our surroundings and harm the character of the community.

This development is completely incompatible with the existing rural lifestyle and the expectations of those who have invested their lives and livelihoods here.

2. Road Safety Concerns – Especially for Young Drivers

The proposed quarry will add a significant number of large, heavy trucks to our local roads, many of which are narrow, winding, and not designed for industrial-scale traffic. This will substantially increase the risk of serious accidents.

As a parent, I am deeply concerned for the safety of my children, who will soon begin learning to drive. Young, inexperienced drivers will face a far greater danger navigating around frequent, oversized vehicles. This poses an unacceptable risk to not only my family but also to other road users, including cyclists, pedestrians, and school buses.

No development should be approved that jeopardises the safety of our community.

3. Environmental Impacts

The environmental consequences of this quarry would be devastating and long-lasting:

- Habitat destruction: Clearing land for the quarry will displace native wildlife and damage fragile ecosystems.
- Dust and air pollution: Quarrying generates high levels of airborne dust, which will impact the health of residents, livestock, and surrounding vegetation.
- Water contamination: Runoff from quarry operations could pollute nearby creeks, dams, and water supplies, harming both wildlife and agricultural productivity.
- Noise pollution: Constant blasting and machinery will disturb both people and animals, disrupting natural behaviours of local fauna.

Our area’s environmental values are irreplaceable and must be protected for future generations rather than sacrificed for short-term industrial gain.

4. Conclusion

The proposed quarry is entirely unsuitable for our community and this location. It would bring irreversible harm to the area’s character, create serious safety hazards, and have significant environmental consequences.

I strongly urge the council and relevant authorities to reject this proposal in order to protect the wellbeing, safety, and lifestyle of the families who call this community home.

Thank you for considering my submission and for taking into account the long-term interests of the residents of Royalla and surrounds

I question the requirement for another quarry to be built in this region, particularly given the three other quarries are currently operating below capacity. The widespread environmental and health impacts that are likely to result from such a project would far outweigh the shortsighted economic gains of the few.

For a project with such significant impact to the region, there does not appear to be any clear benefit to the Royalla community. Already heavily trafficked roads will become busier and experience more degradation. Ground water and air quality will undoubtedly be contaminated, risking the health of humans and livestock in the area. Noise pollution from blasting and additional truck traffic will impact property prices and quality of life in this area.

Overall, the only benefit observed is profits for Monaro Rock and Queanbeyan Council. There does not appear to be any tangible benefit for the Royalla residents who will ultimately pay the price in quality of life and health.

The quary is going to impact the community negatively with increased traffic, environmenyal noise, environmental destruction which will affect endangered gliders aswell as silica dust impacting houses, schools and multiple suburbs within the ACT not just Royalla. When is the environment and pur health going to be prioritised over profit?! Is another quary necessary and if so why do close to houses and schools please reconsider.
Rural residents are hoping to stop empty paddocks being transformed into a million-tonne-per-year rock quarry over their back fence.

A plan for Monaro Rock's proposed quarry in Royalla, on the border of the ACT and New South Wales, has been published online for public feedback.

Local residents have known about plans for the quarry since 2021, with the latest proposal showing the quarry would take up 545 hectares and sit less than three kilometres from homes in Tuggeranong in Canberra's south.
But residents in the township of Royalla across the border in NSW are even closer, with some homes neighbouring the project's boundary.

the noise impacts of the quarry, as well as truck traffic, dust emissions and possible home devaluation.

"Quarries are normally out in the sticks where there are no residents," Mr Tine said.

"They want to propose one right in the middle of our little estate here … it's just not right."

We all object and agree with this article.

Leave our beautiful land be and allow us to breathe easy.

The Monaro Rock Quarry Project is going to create dust related health issues carried on the wind, collecting on homes, solar panels and washing into our water tanks to be consumed by young children potentially leading to longer term health issues. The quarry site is very close to rural residential home sites and the blasting noise, vibrations and odour will be damaging to the currently serene lifestyle being experienced by the residents. The increased traffic on either the Old Cooma Road and Monaro Highway which at peak hour are already experiencing a high level of traffic would create safety issues and further delays. The water to be extracted will likely impact considerably on the water table height which my dam and others are dependent upon as a water source for stock and domestic purposes. Putting an industrial site so close to Canberra, noting there are already 3 other gravel quarries in the area would be a very short term decision lacking strategic consideration as the focus should be on providing increased housing to help alleviate the current housing crisis and keep industrial type activities to areas of lower population or further distance from housing, noting that the existing quarries around Canberra can more than adequately supply the need for ages anyway without this proposed development going ahead. Additionally, a number of us have invested heavily in the area to purchase or house/land and put on improvements such as fencing and sheds, if the development goes ahead our properties will not be desirable, will not sell quickly or need to be sold at prices considerably reduced, will Monaro Rocks be paying compensation to local landholders to offset some of this? Also, will there be a public hearing prior to (if it is going this way) the quarry being approved? Thank you for taking the time to consider these points.

From my reading of the documentation available, this quarry will have serious adverse health, environmental and economic impacts for the community and region. The application fails on many considerations, notably the growing community size and poor assessment assumptions. The benefits (30 jobs) are minor compared to the impacts this quarry would have on the region.

I strongly object to the Monaro Rocks Quarry at Royalla.
They make some very interesting claims in their EIS including that there will be shortfall of hard rock supply in the Canberra-Queanbyean district. It is my understanding that the other quarries in the area are not operating at capacity and therefore there will not be a shortfall in demand of hard rock that Monaro Rock is predicting. These quarries have the capacity of last over 100 years, another quarry is not needed or warranted.
The hours of operation are unreasonable an inconsiderate of the residents of Royalla, Googong and southern suburbs of Canberra, the increase in noise and traffic the quarry would create is unfair and selfish of Monaro Rocks. The EIS indicates that Monaro Rocks knows that they will be exceeding acceptable noise levels and is not able to guarantee noise management practices will be successful in ensuring that daytime levels are not exceeded. The word 'should' on page 25 of the EIS means that they cannot guarantee their noise mitigation strategies would work. Will Monaro Rocks be compensating residents for excess noise, paying for insulating, double glazing windows etc. or will this be the responsibility of the NSW government if the proposal is approved. It is unjust to pass this expense onto residents for a development that does not need to occur.
In the same way, will there be compensation for damage to infrastructure from blasting, health effects of silica dust all of which again cannot be guaranteed will not occur. I am sure it is not the families of the Monaro Rocks companies that will be impacted by this and I can guarantee they will not be purchasing nearby homes to move their families into. Perhaps Monaro Rocks will be able to pick up a few bargain properties though as all the surrounding residences will be so significantly devalued?
Using 42Megalitres of groundwater a year is unfair to the rural residents who currently share this precious resources. Will the NSW government of Monaro Rocks be connecting all rural-residential blocks which currently rely on bores/creeks/natural springs for stock and domestic purposes with with town water once they have rendered the domestic bores useless? This is yet another consideration that is important to landholders and should therefore be important to the NSW government.
The critically endangered species which currently call Enchanted Hill home are at risk if the development were to be approved. Is the NSW government serious about the environment or is it simply going to give lip service to the residents of NSW whilst it allows destruction of important biodiversity sites? This an opportunity for the government to show that environmentally fragile sites are important, not to mention indigenous artifacts and culturally significant objects.
Traffic is already a significant issue on the Old Cooma Road and Monaro Highways, there is simply not the infrastructure in place to allow for the significant increase in heavy machinery that the quarry will require. The dead wombats and kangaroos on the Monaro Highway and Old Cooma Road is heartbreaking and moving the animals out of the Enchanted Hill area through noise etc. is a danger to road users.
Please do not allow the Monaro Rocks proposal to go ahead, I believe that there is no need for the quarry and the problems that the quarry will create does not justify its existence. Also, will there be a public hearing prior to further considering the approval application?