Stone-Ideas.com 
When catastrophic rain is forecast, the machines are removed from the bottom of the quarry
Our pictures from a Rosal Stones quarry in 2018 have none of the drama of the heavy rain seen in the Spanish province of Valencia at the end of October 2024. We asked our friends from the natural stone sector in Spain whether they had been affected by the disaster, whether they had any experience with extreme rainfall, and how they would protect themselves against it. Catalina Sánchez, head of Rosal Stones, replied.
Stone-Ideas.com: What is the situation like for you?
Catalina Sánchez: We are based in the province of Murcia, which is around 250 km south of the city of Valencia, around two and a half hours on the motorway. It wasn‘t bad here. In the province of Valencia it was extreme.
Stone-Ideas.com: Are you familiar with situations like this?
Catalina Sánchez: We also had bad rainfall in 2018, but nowhere near as catastrophic. Back then, our quarries were full of water. The photos show it.
Stone-Ideas.com: In the photos, it looks like you‘re dealing with swimming pools.
Catalina Sánchez: Well, yes. Since then, we have an emergency plan. It says: If torrential rain is forecast, we bring the machines up from the bottom of the quarry. Then extraction is stopped. Other work is possible, but can only be carried out with special care.
Stone-Ideas.com: And when the rain is over?
Catalina Sánchez: We have the experts from the water authority* examine the water and mud for harmful substances. We have a system of terraces, ditches and ponds where we can manage the water. This keeps the mud and soil in place and prevents it from having to be pumped elsewhere.
Stone-Ideas.com: What about the rainwater that comes off the roofs of the workshops?
Catalina Sánchez: We have a similar system for this with a channel that collects all the water from the plant and feeds it into the central pond. At the end, the water here and there is clean and can be fed back into the circuits.
Stone-Ideas.com: So is Rosal Stones on the safe side?
Catalina Sánchez /raises her eyebrows/: We do the best we can to avoid damage to our facilities, our mining operations and the environment around us. But we are dealing with a new reality: We can’t really be sure that extreme weather won’t overrun us at some point.
* Confederación Hidrográfica del Segura
Photos: Rosal Stones
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