WILLIAMS, Ariz. — Mining at the Frenchy Pit northeast of Williams is expected to begin in early May, according to a Drake Cement, LLC press release.

The company plans to extract the cement additive pozzolan from claims held in old quarries.

Fencing, signage and staging equipment has already been installed on site and site preparation work has been completed.

Once fully operational, Drake is expected to remove 300,000 to 500,000 tons of material annually over 20 years within the 65-acre project area. According to the U.S. Forest Service, a temporary plant facility will be installed on the site and will be removed at the end of mining.

Pozzolanic deposits can be removed using standard surface mining methods and equipment such as excavators and bulldozers, so no blasting occurs. Mining activity should occur primarily during the daytime on weekdays and sometimes on weekends.

According to the USFS, the material will be trucked offsite via Forest Road 74 to Interstate 40.

Drake Cement spokesperson David Chavez estimates that five days a week, up to 12 trucks will be used to haul materials from the site.

“Mining operations are expected to occur for nine months of the year,” said Chavez. “Pozzolans stockpiled from mining operations are transported year-round to the Drake Cement Plant in Polden, weather conditions permitting.”

Drake Cement has also proposed pozzolanic exploration activities at the eastern foot of Bill Williams Mountain near Perkinsville Road south of the city of Williams. The Forest Service conducts environmental reviews of proposed actions as described in the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

If approved, the company will dig eight trenches to collect samples for pozzolana analysis in the mountains prior to mining.