Rutland: New limestone quarry given green light

The quarry will be situated in Stretton Road in Greetham

A new quarry that will mine limestone for at least 20 years has been granted planning permission.

The new quarry will be placed between Stretton and Greetham in Rutland.

A parish council and residents opposed the application claimed it could expose people to "significant harm".

However, members of Rutland County Council's planning committee have given the project their unanimous support but attached conditions to restrict traffic, noise and dust.

The quarry is expected to extract five million tonnes of limestone aggregate over 20 years and will be located opposite a Mick George quarry in Stretton Road in Greetham, which was recently given planning consent.

'Uncharted territory'

Ken Edward, chairman of Greetham Parish Council, opposed the project and said both quarries would be mining the same stone.

"They are separated only by Thistleton Lane, and uncontrolled high levels of dust could affect residents from simultaneous emissions from both quarries," he said.

"Having two quarries, side by side, next to a village is uncharted territory for Rutland."

He added the residents of Greetham could be at risk of "significant harm" due to dust produced at the quarry.

Other neighbours voiced concerns over noise of quarry and industrial activities, additional traffic and safety for people crossing local roads, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

In addition to limestone aggregate, the new quarry is expected to yield about 400,000 tonnes of ironstone and 40,000 tonnes of blockstone during its 20-year lifespan.

Members of the planning committee agreed the application should have conditions attached to it, including constraints for the movement of traffic, adequate dust and noise monitoring, a footpath provision along Stretton Road and be subject to an environmental impact assessment.