Midweg Quarry
Exposed limestone in the former quarry
The quarry with a profile sketch

The Midweg Quarry (Dutch: Groeve Midweg) is a limestone quarry and geological monument located in the municipality of Voerendaal in the Dutch province of South Limburg. The open-pit quarry is situated less than a kilometer southwest of Kunrade along the Midweg, the road connecting Kunrade/Voerendaal to Ransdaal. The quarry is positioned on a slope at the northwestern edge of the Ubachsberg Plateau, transitioning into the Ransdalerveld.

Geology

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The quarry is located on the steep slope of the Kunrader Fault. To the north of the fault, Tertiary deposits are found at the surface, while to the south, dense Kunrader limestone is exposed at the surface.[1]

The limestone in the quarry is of the Kunrader limestone type from the Maastricht Formation. This limestone is characterized by alternating hard and soft limestone layers, typical of this type of stone.[1]

The lower part of the exposure lacks hard limestone beds and may belong to the Gronsveld Member, followed by the possible Schiepersberg Horizon and the Schiepersberg Member, which do contain alternating hard and soft layers.[2]

Lime Kilns

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The limestone was used as a building material, but it was also burnt in lime kilns to produce quicklime, which was used in industry or for liming fields. The quarry housed the Midweg Lime Kiln.[1] Further northwest, there are two more lime-burning facilities: the American Lime Kiln and the Castle Haren Lime Kiln (with Moonen Quarry).[3]

See also

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  • List of geological monuments in South Limburg

References

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  1. ^ a b c Geological monuments in South Limburg (CD-ROM): Midweg Quarry, Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research, 1999
  2. ^ The Cretaceous of South Limburg, series Geology of the Netherlands, W.M. Felder, P.W. Bosch, Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research, 2000, ISBN 90-6743-710-7
  3. ^ Lime kilns in South Limburg, Jan H.M. Nillesen, 2014, Dutch Geological Society, Limburg section, ISBN 978-90-81346-50-4

50°52′17.78″N 5°55′6.24″E / 50.8716056°N 5.9184000°E / 50.8716056; 5.9184000