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3.4 Project Objectives Surrounding properties are used for agricultural crops, orchards, an agriculture composting facility,and mining activities. Another mining operation,located directly to the south of the project site has been permitted but not yet built. A rural residence is located adjacent to the northeast side of the site along Blewett Road. 3.4 Project Objectives The specific purposes and objectives of the Applicant in implementing the Proposed Project include: r • Provide a reliable source of construction aggregate for the San Joaquin County and Stanislaus County areas. • Replace depleted resources at the Applicant's Tracy facility. • Provide a full range of aggregate products from one location. • Retain company employment associated with aggregate extraction and processing. ` • Maximize use of existing aggregate processing facilities and investments. For example, some of the aggregate plant processing equipment currently located at the Applicant's Tracy aggregate plant will be relocated to Vernalis when processing is discontinued at Tracy. Some of this relocated equipment will consist of scrubbers, coarse and fine material washers, dewatering screens, radial stackers, etc. • Retain company position and market share as a leading regional aggregate provider. • Provide economical ready mix concrete and asphalt for the local market. • Recycle broken concrete and asphalt pavement into base material rather than having ` this material go to a landfill. 3.5 Geologic Setting The project site is located in the southeastern portion of San Joaquin County and the northwestern portion of Stanislaus County, in central California. The region is characterized by the geology of the Great Valley (or Central Valley) geomorphic province, a topographically dominant northwest- trending valley approximately 50 miles wide and 400 miles long that formed between the Coast Range Mountains to the west and the Sierra Nevada Mountains to the east. The southern portion of the province,called the San Joaquin Valley,contains the San Joaquin River and its many tributaries, including the Merced,Stanislaus, and Tuolumne Rivers. The topography of the Central Valley is relatively flat, with elevations ranging from a few feet to a few hundred feet above mean sea level (msl). The project site ranges from 159 feet above mst in its northeast corner to 211 feet above msl in its southwest corner. The topographic gradient is approximately r 40 feet per mile(0.5 degrees),decreasing in elevation toward the northeast. The ground surface is relatively level with less than 1 percent cross slope from southwest to northeast and with no ` noticeable landforms other than Hospital Creek. r RMC Pacific Vernalis Quarry Mining and Reclamation Project 3-7 ESA/203015 Draft Environmental Impact Report May 2006