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Explosives business is booming in Maine

Mar, 30 2005

Explosives business is booming in Maine (AUGUSTA, Maine) — The use of explosives in Maine has nearly tripled over the last decade, pointing to the depletion of easily developed land in a state where stone often lies right beneath the soil. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, Maine's consumption of explosives increased from 518 metric tons in 1994 to 1,480 metric tons in 2003. "We've basically developed all of the easy ground," said Lon Santis of the Institute of Makers of Explosives. "The only patches of land we have left to develop are the difficult ones. And what makes them difficult is rock." Even small subdivisions now require the use of explosives to clear the land for development, says Bill Purington, president of Maine Drilling and Blasting in Gardiner. Major road projects including the Big Dig in Boston and the widening of the southern leg of the Maine Turnpike also may have contributed to the increase, as Maine gravel and concrete businesses helped fill demand those projects created. But environmental advocates worry that increased explosive use could pose problems for the state's water quality and threaten its environmental resources. Ed Friedman, chairman of Friends of Merrymeeting Bay, says gravel pits in Maine tend to be poorly regulated and can threaten groundwater quality or cause runoff that harms rivers, streams and bays. Portland Press Herald