By Katie Northcott, News Director
The deadline to submit a comment to the Tennessee Department of Environmental Conservation (TDEC) regarding a pending permit for a quarry in Beechgrove is Friday, Jan. 30.
On Dec. 31, 2025, TDEC published a public notice to notify the public of pending National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit actions. A permit for Waterson Farm Lakes to quarry limestone in Beechgrove appeared on the list of proposed issuances.
“The purpose of this notice is to advise the public of the following proposed permit actions and to solicit comments and information necessary to evaluate the potential impact of the proposed activities on human health and the environment,” the notice read.
The notice said that those wishing to comment should submit their comments in writing to the Mining Section at the Knoxville Environmental Field Office at 3711 Middlebrook Pike, Suite 101, Knoxville, TN 37921-6538, Attn: Public Notice Coordinator.
Comments may also be submitted via fax to 865-594-6105 or by email to dmgr.publicnotice@tn.gov.
The notice has received attention from Coffee County Mayor Dennis Hunt and Coffee County for Responsible Growth, a Facebook Group.
At Hunt’s request, Coffee County Attorney Mark Williams submitted a letter to TDEC requesting a public hearing related to the permit request.
“There has been significant concern raised to the County about the possible negative effects of a mining operation in this area to the Duck River Watershed,” Williams said in his letter.
Williams also raised concerns that granting the application would circumvent the county’s Zoning Resolution. He expressed doubt that the applicant wanted to quarry limestone for the purpose of creating lakes to water cattle.
“Considering that the applicant has previously attempted and failed to have the property rezoned to allow a quarry operation, this application certainly appears to present a renewed effort to open a limestone quarry in an area which is not zoned while cloaking it under the guise of an agricultural purpose,” Williams said in the letter.
Images of Williams’ letter to TDEC are copied below. The images were originally shared by Hunt.
Those submitting comments to TDEC may also request a public hearing by clearly stating that they would like to request a public hearing and indicating the interest of the party requesting the public hearing, the reasons that a hearing is warranted, and the water quality issues being raised.
The post Deadline Nears to Comment on New Quarry Permit in Coffee County appeared first on Thunder Radio.
