Quarry near Cromford bids to operate for 12 more years

The site was initially planned to finish operation in 2021

A Derbyshire quarry is set to be given permission to operate for over a decade longer than first planned, despite noise concerns.

Plans for Slinter Top Quarry, northwest of Cromford, to be extended by around six acres and operational for a further 12 years are now recommended for approval.

Splinter Mining Company first bid for the extension in 2017.

Derbyshire County Council is only now set to rule on them.

The changes will mean quarrying up to 2033, with an extra 1.32 million tonnes of limestone to be mined at a rate of 100,000 tonnes per year, reports the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The site, on the edge of the Peak District, would then be restored by 2037.

Lack of minerals

A total of 50 letters have been written to the county council over the proposal - due to be discussed by planners on Monday - with all but one objecting to the scheme.

Residents raise concerns primarily over "unacceptable" noise and dust, as well as its impact on the area visually and on tourism.

They also claim there is a lack of minerals in the planned extension.

Council planning officials, recommending approval, said: "I acknowledge that there are some unavoidable impacts on landscape and visual amenity, and I also note the concerns in relation to the potential effects of noise.

"However, I am satisfied that the proposed conditions would ensure that the environmental effects of the development would not be unacceptable."