European & International Federation of Natural Stone Industries
Federation Europeenne & Internationale des Industries de la Pierre Naturelle

The product and its logo

Dimension stone exists in nature as an almost ready-made building material. Few realize, however, that it takes millions of years for this material to get to the point at which it can be easily produced and processed.

Mining and the resources required to carry it out certainly represent a direct interference with nature and the local countryside. This interference is only temporary and limited in its effects and creates new living areas and a new special area. Raw material processing and environmental protection need not be juxtaposed but can rather complement each other with nature benefiting from rock mining, and opportunities created for environmental protection. Temporary interference simply means that, as opposed to industry, housing and the creation of infrastructure - processes in which nature is removed from an area - , a mining area is only temporarily used and then returned at the end of the process. Normally only a partial and temporary use of the area occurs; long term large area usage is rarely necessary. The limited and temporary use of the land and surrounding nature possible through dimension mining is based on the fact that unlike other forms of raw material processing and mining, mining for dimension and other natural building stone is done at high volume rates and the use of the area is quite small.

It is interesting to note that in heavily populated Europe with its former large natural regions, an irreversible displacement of these natural landscapes has occurred. Long-term construction of infrastructure and buildings and man-made locations where regular farming and forestry take place all work against the normal grain of nature. Much of the natural fauna and flora of these highly varied natural areas has been destroyed and replaced by non-natural structures which simply do not work in harmony with the surroundings. This opportunity has, however, led to a dynamic change in growth and development of the standard of living for the inhabitants, as well as increased production and consumption. These are now advantages that few would ever want to live without. Many of these hundred-year-old ecosystems have been so damaged that it will be impossible to undo what has been done.

A stone quarry is often considered an eyesore to the landscape and natural environment. It is seen to be destructive of the general atmosphere of an area, robbing it of its natural beauty. People often feel that cliffs on the coast (e.g. Dover) or sandstone mountains (e. g. near Dresden) are natural monuments to be preserved. The similarity between the cliffs of a quarry and these cliffs is considered by most to be purely coincidental.

It must be recognised that during the mining process and especially after a quarry has been closed down, these important functions have been taken over. Former quarries become homes for rare and threatened animals and plants. Recultivating quarry areas gives nature the chance to rebuild threatened biotopes after a short rehabilitation stage. It is easy to understand since most of the mapped biotope sites in this country were once mining fields for raw materials. Each quarry can be seen as a future site for rich natural landscapes and areas with a multitude of biotopes and areas for growth.

The product needs a face. The consumer has to be sure that he gets real stone, competence in quality and knowledge about the stone. EUROROC voted for a logo which will be introduced within the next years all over Europe.