Smarter Quarry Water Management: What Quarries Are Telling Us
Insights from CDE’s Eoin Butcher at QuarryNZ Conference 2025
At this year’s QuarryNZ Conference, CDE’s Business Development Manager, Eoin Butcher, delivered one of the most practical and resonant presentations of the event—focusing squarely on the urgent need for smarter quarry water management solutions.
Drawing from field experience and direct conversations with site managers, Eoin highlighted why water systems are no longer just a compliance issue—they are now a key operational and strategic concern.
“Water is where the pressure’s building,” Eoin said. “From safety to cost to resource recovery, quarries need smarter, more sustainable solutions—urgently.”
His presentation formed the foundation of what is becoming a wider industry conversation around smarter, more efficient, and more integrated water management practices. Here are the four key issues he raised:
What Quarries Are Really Facing
- Ponds Taking Up Valuable Space
Settlement ponds are increasingly consuming operational land that could otherwise be mined or used for infrastructure. “Ponds are taking up too much space and are covering possible resource,” Eoin noted. For many sites, this is now a constraint on production potential. - Material That Won’t Settle Naturally
Some sites are dealing with silts and clays that won’t drop out of suspension without chemical help. “The material doesn’t settle out naturally in water; it requires chemical dosing,” Eoin explained. That adds both complexity and cost to daily operations. - Mounting Operational Costs
It’s not just the space—cleaning and maintaining ponds is resource-intensive. “Diesel, man hours, machinery wear—pond maintenance adds up,” Eoin noted. For many sites, this is becoming a hidden drain on budgets. - Growing Safety Risks
Perhaps the most critical point: when water management systems get out of hand, they become a hazard. “Customers have approached us to help as their ponds are getting out of hand and becoming a risk on site,” Eoin said. This includes the risk of bank collapses, slips, and compliance issues.
Delivering Smarter Solutions with Rocktec + CDE
These are exactly the issues the Rocktec + CDE partnership is designed to solve. By combining CDE’s world-class wet processing technology with Rocktec’s local engineering expertise and delivery, we’re equipping New Zealand’s materials producers with practical, future-ready solutions:
- Modular water recycling systems that reduce or eliminate the need for large settlement ponds
- Advanced chemical treatment options for difficult silts and claybound feeds
- Automation and layout optimisation that reduce operational overhead
- Cleaner, safer water systems that improve site performance and regulatory confidence
For more on CDE’s international success in wet processing, visit cdegroup.com.
Taking the Next Step Toward Smarter Water Management
Eoin’s insights serve as a timely reminder: water is no longer just a background process in quarrying—it’s a critical operational system that must perform as efficiently and safely as any other part of the plant.
As environmental expectations rise and site challenges become more complex, Rocktec and CDE are helping quarries take back control of their water systems—making them cleaner, smarter, and more commercially sustainable.