There’s still no construction underway on the Martin Marietta Materials limestone mine planned for Vanceboro. That’s the latest from Sound Rivers’ Pamlico-Tar Riverkeeper Katey Zimmerman, who says she went looking for an update on the proposed 649-acre mine.
The quarry could discharge as much as 12 million gallons of freshwater a day from the mining process into the brackish headwaters of Blounts Creek.
Zimmerman says state environmental officials inspected the site September 18th and met with Martin Marietta’s environmental engineer. She says the inspection report states the site has not been developed and there were no plans to begin construction at the time of the visit.
Zimmerman says she’s contacted state officials for more information about the mine’s future plans and will continue collecting baseline water-quality data from Blounts Creek.
The mine has been the subject of more than a decade of legal challenges by Sound Rivers and the North Carolina Coastal Federation. The state renewed Martin Marietta’s permit in 2025, allowing the project to move forward.
