April 23, 2010 – After sitting dormant since late 2007, Lafarge North America is preparing to reopen its Town of Niagara quarry, the Buffalo Business First reported today.

Lafarge closed the quarry, which produces crushed stone commonly used in road repair projects, because of the weakened national economy. “We’re opening on a small scale, and hope as the economy picks up, we will add more people," said Dana Hewson, Lafarge North America senior land manager.

Initially, the quarry will employ half a dozen workers.

Lafarge North America, which has several local operations, including a cement terminal in Buffalo and an asphalt plant in Lockport, has 181 area workers.

Hewson said the quarry work is restarting because of increased demands for construction materials needed for roads and other projects. The quarry will operate six days a week.

"The market is turning positive, so reopening the quarry for business on a smaller scale is a positive event for our customers, revenues and employment levels," said George Lindbloom, Lafarge North America plant manager.

Initial plans call for the quarry to produce between 200,000 tonnes and 300,000 tonnes of crushed stone this year -- a figure that's about half of its previous outputs.”