AGGREGATE & QUARRY ASSOCIATION
Fact Files

DID YOU KNOW?
- New Zealand uses 9-10 tonnes of aggregate every year for each adult and child.
- To build an average house, you need about 250 tonnes of aggregate – for use in concrete, asphalt, mortar and building products.
- To build 1km of a two-lane motorway, you need around 14,000 tonnes of construction aggregates (400 truckloads).
- Quarrying needs to be carried out close to where materials will be used. This keeps transportation costs low and helps to minimise building costs and emissions in local communities. Otherwise, it costs double for the first 30km and increases for every further kilometre that material is carried from its quarry source.
- The quarry industry is committed to working alongside local communities and follows stringent planning, environmental and operating conditions.
- New Zealand needs to plan ahead and protect our aggregate supplies – so we can provide affordable houses for Kiwis and continue to build and repair our infrastructure.
Aggregates are fundamental to the lives of everyday New Zealanders. Without an on-going supply of aggregates, the production of concrete and the development of buildings, roads and infrastructure would come to a standstill.
Transmission Gully – Stabilisation and Chipsealing
2019 AGGREGATE PRODUCTION STATISTICS


Roading products (24Mt) increased their total tonnage for the third year in a row.
Building aggregates declined to 15% (5.8Mt) which was significantly down on the previous 5-year average of 9Mt.

COUNTRY/TONNES PER PERSON
British Columbia (Canada) 50Mt / 5.017 population = 10t/person
Australia – 8.0t/per person
United States – 7.7t/person (2016)
South Africa 2.5t/person (2016)
LOCATION AND TRANSPORT

And this graph compares regional production over the last decade.


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ABOUT QUARRYING IN NEW ZEALAND
USING AGGREGATE
Aggregates are the most consumed bulk product in the world after water. New Zealand uses 9-10 tonnes of aggregate every year for each adult and child.
BUILDING NZ
To build an average house, you need about 250 tonnes of aggregate - for use in concrete, asphalt, mortar and building products.
OUR COMMUNITY
The quarry industry is committed to working alongside local communities and follows stringent planning, environmental and operating conditions.