Ambitious plans for massive new quarries on the outskirts of Lichfield were given the thumbs down by residents this week. Following a recent consultation on sand and gravel extraction across the county an overwhelming majority of people living in rural areas around the district said they are against plans for massive new quarries and extensions to existing ones. Proposal include a new quarry on the outskirts of Fisherwick near Whittington and a massive quarry at Bucks Head Farm near Weeford. As well as the environmental damage to the Staffordshire countryside, 94% of respondents living close to existing quarries say they are fed up with the dust, noise, filthy roads and thundering gravel lorries which have plagued their areas for decades. Of the 38 quarry proposals across the county, the biggest is at Bucks Head farm near the villages of Weeford and Hints. A brand new quarry is also being proposed at Fisherwick, on the outskirts of Whittington. Matthew Ellis, Lichfield Rural East's County Councillor, says he is pleased that the response to the initial quarry consultation has been so large. He said: "My biggest concern was that people living in the areas affected may not make their views known formally. That's why, with the help of several parish councils, my first priority has been to raise the profile of this issue and encourage as many people as possible to reply to the county's consultation. It appears to have worked and it's good news that almost 200 submissions have been made by residents locally." Over 150 people had the chance to make their views known at two public meetings arranged by the parish councils of Weeford and Hints with Canwell. Parish Council chairman, Cllr Geoff Kynaston, who chaired the packed meeting at Hints Village Hall said residents are angry at the prospect of yet more quarrying near by. He said: "These proposals are a real blow to our community. With existing quarry works due to end in the next couple of years we hoped we'd get some relief from the constant lorries and dust. The countryside locally has been ripped apart over the past forty years and we believe enough is enough, not only for the environment but also for locals who've had to put up with it." Fisherwick resident, Terry Roome, says the proposals from Tarmac would leave their small community surrounded by quarry workings. He said: "This is something we simply have to fight. If this goes ahead it will have a devastating effect on local homes and people as well as destroying nearly three hundred acres of agricultural land which is likely to become more and more important in the future." Staffordshire currently provides nearly 65% of all the aggregate quarried in the West Midlands Region and the 150million tonnes now proposed by the aggregates industry could see that figure rise even higher. County Councillor Ellis believes the Staffordshire countryside and rural communities deserve some respite from even more of the same. He added: "Of course we need materials for the construction industry and I do understand that the geology of our county lends itself well to aggregate extraction. But few would disagree that Staffordshire has contributed far more than its fair share over several decades. We are not the only area with natural aggregate reserves in the region and currently, after Staffordshire, the next biggest contributors are Warwickshire providing less than 10% with Worcestershire and Shropshire providing only about 8% each. "A crucial factor in giving Staffordshire's environment and people a break from this is for other areas in the region to provide just a little bit more. I don't believe that is unreasonable and during early negotiations with regional partners I'm calling on officials to take account of the policy, recently adopted by the County Conservative Group, stating exactly that." County officials will spend the next six months assessing industry proposals and consultation submissions from across Staffordshire. Although the formal period for public comments closed on November 24 observations received in the next three weeks will still be taken into account. Details on the consultation decision making process are available at www.staffordshire.gov.uk and more information on local views and proposals is available at www. matthewellis.cc/quarry. Bucks Head Farm proposals are for extracting 23.4million tonnes of sand and gravel over 26 years which could see an estimated 1500 HGV movements to and from the site each week. | 
