Proposed quarry would change Newport landscape, says councillor
Proposals for an quarry near Newport would put its landscape under threat – according to a councillor.
Councillor Andrew Eade is calling for as many residents as possible to attend a crunch planning meeting which was being held tonight.
Ward member for Church Aston and Lilleshall, he said the meeting will help decide the fate of the open countryside, with Telford & Wrekin Council set to decide its position on the proposed gravel quarry on Pave Lane ahead of a planning inquiry.
The applicant has put the plans forward for appeal on the grounds of non-determination by the council.
The plans were put forward on May 16, 2016, with an extension on the decision making allowed until December 2016. But due to the complex nature of the application, and the need for advice from multiple sources including Shropshire Council, the deadline was not met and the applicant has applied for the appeal.
In a report presented to Telford & Wrekin Council's planning committee ahead of its meeting says officers would have recommended refusing the application.
At the meeting, members will be asked to put forward reasons that the quarry should not go ahead, which will be presented at the enquiry, to be held in November.
Councillor Eade said "The future of this striking piece of countryside at the edge of Newport now hangs in the balance and at stake is the desecration of fields which will see them ripped up and turned into an open cast quarry, a huge concrete plant and over 20 years of future landfill.
"Literally hundreds of wagons movements will need to leave and access the site on a daily basis using the Pave Lane junction with the fast A41, perhaps the most dangerous junction in the entire borough..
"Careful scrutiny of the planning application has revealed that application operating hours will actually be between 6.00 am and 7.00 pm five days per week plus Saturday mornings and will change the lives of local residents for a generation to come."
He urged as many people as possible to attend tonight's meeting to voice their opposition.
He said: "The sheer number of people showing their opposition to planning councillors can make all of the difference to the outcome, so please support this last minute plea for help."
