HYDROGEOLOGIC ASSESSMENT CAPITOL PAVING MONTROSE PIT

My previous posting (Sat.) has the link to this report. Something is very fishy . As per Fig. 9 there is on average only five metres (15 ft.) thickness of sand and gravel on this site. Of course they want to excavate all of it. Fig. 11 shows the final plan of the rehabilitated site. Basically they are constructing a huge bathtub fifteen feet deep into the surrounding terrain with the outlet (plug) on the west side directly into the Grand River.
To me the quantities of sand and gravel appear minimal for a commercial operation, as per their data presented. At the same time they are building a bathtub, which with the high water table and after extraction no sand or gravel for drainage, will turn into a mudhole. All of this combined will cause the replaced surface topsoil to erode downslope into the wetlands and the river. This silt (eroded topsoil) will continue the damage being done throughout the Grand River valley.

An aquifer by definition consists of groundwater flowing through permeable materials such as sand and gravel. An aquitard (till unit) sitting below the aquifer as in this case inhibits downward groundwater flow and promotes horizantal flow to the river. Removing the aquifer materials does not remove the groundwater. The groundwater will sit on top of the aquitard (till) in the pore spaces in the surface cover (topsoil). This saturated topsoil will become a muddy mess. Comparing Fig.4 (till elevation) & Fig.11 with Fig. 7 (water table elevation) clearly shows that the water table surface is above the aquitard (till) and practically at the surface of the final rehabilitated site (Fig. 11).

Something is very wrong here. I smell either incompetence or deception . Aside from the myriad of other reasons not to build this pit in West Montrose, my opinion is that these plans are technically unsound.