Asphalt Inc. has officially applied for a groundwater permit in Burnet County to help operate its proposed 715-acre rock quarry on Hoover Valley Road near Burnet. This permit would be one of the last checkpoints needed for the aggregate mining company to get to work on the new facility. 

A preliminary hearing on the permit will be held at 9 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14, at the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Auditorium, 607 N. Vandeveer Street in Burnet.

A final decision on the permit will not be made at the upcoming meeting. The purpose of the hearing is to determine whether any affected parties oppose the permit and if they should be granted party status for a future hearing. Any affected person must provide the district with a written request for a contested case hearing seven days prior to the meeting.

The rock-crushing facility, spearheaded by Asphalt Inc., has faced steady community pushback since news of its plans broke in 2024.

The Central Texas Groundwater Conservation District (CTGCD), which regulates groundwater use in Burnet County, must now decide whether to approve the quarry’s permit. 

See the full permit application and accompanying information on the CTGCD website here.

CTGCD Board President Ryan Rowney told DailyTrib on Tuesday, Sept. 22, that the board will give ample opportunity for the community to voice their concerns during the hearing, but the district must follow established rules and regulations.

“At the end of the day, the board is dedicated to following Texas water law and the rules of our own district,” CTGCD Board President Ryan Rowney told DailyTrib. “We’re going to follow the law and that’s all we can do. But, we’ll be (at the permit hearing) all day long if we need to be. We want to make sure everyone gets a chance to voice their opinions.”

The permit requests two wells producing 115 and 35 gallons per minute, respectively, and could amount to roughly 240 acre-feet per year of groundwater. An acre-foot refers to the amount of water that would cover one acre of land to a depth of one foot. CTGCD staff noted that this is within the typical range of other aggregate quarries in the area.

The groundwater permit’s approval is one of the last checkpoints which Asphalt Inc. must clear before it is able to begin operations since the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and Lower Colorado River Authority approved their respective permits to Asphalt Inc. last year.

According to the posted notice of the preliminary hearing, it is the intent of General Manager Mitchell Sodek to recommend the approval of the permit. On Tuesday, Sodek told DailyTrib the following regarding the recommendation:

“The application has been determined to be administratively complete, and the district staff has completed its evaluation.

“Consistent with the district’s permitting process, the general manager’s recommendation will be presented during a public permit hearing for consideration by the Board of Directors.

“In developing the recommendation, the district staff evaluated the nature and purpose of the proposed use, the applicant’s water balance estimates, anticipated well run times, available stormwater supplies, and projected water demands for dust suppression and other operational uses to determine the recommended annual production volume.”

Background

Asphalt Inc.’s rock quarry has been in the public eye since the latter half of 2024, and has since drawn considerable community backlash due to its close proximity to Camp Longhorn, Longhorn Cavern State Park, Inks Lake State Park, and Inks Dam National Fish Hatchery.

A local activist group, Save Burnet, has been one of the most vocal in the fight against the rock crusher, garnering a large social media following, providing regular updates on the quarry’s progress, and erecting hundreds of lawn signs, banners, and billboards across the county in opposition.

Local and state representatives have joined the fray with their own resistance. Texas House District 19 Representative Ellen Troxclair attempted to pass legislation last year that could have halted the quarry, but it was shot down by South Texas representative Terry Canales.

A small band of Texas musicians even wrote, composed, and produced an original song opposing the quarry, released in June.

The opposition’s hesitations have mainly boiled down to crucial arguments about the quarry’s operations affecting the area on several levels. Rock blasting affecting the structural integrity of Longhorn Cavern, noise and dust looming at the nearby children’s summer camp, Camp Longhorn, and the use of local groundwater have been at the forefront of concerns.

Despite the steady pushback, Asphalt Inc. has continued to check regulatory boxes and garner necessary permits, getting closer and closer to operations.

caden@thepicayune.com