On Wednesday night South Gloucestershire Council voted unanimously to defer a planning application by Chipping Sodbury quarry.

Council officers had advised that the quarry’s application to update its terms of operation be approved by councillors without amendment. However Cllr Alan Lawrence (Lib Dem, Doddington) moved a proposal that the decision be deferred, so that further negotiations can be had with the quarry in order to get a better deal for local residents.

 Local councillor Adrian Rush (Lib Dem, Chipping Sodbury) said: “This is a very welcome move. Local people have had to put up with dust from quarry stockpiles for the past thirty years. I’m optimistic that these negotiations will lead to a solution for local residents. Hopefully this will see the quarry moving their stockpiles away from local homes, so the dust will be less of a nuisance.”

Lib Dem councillor for Yate North Mike Drew said: “Moving these problematic stockpiles should be good for everyone. It may well save the quarry money in the long run and should mean that the main route out of the new development area will be free of traffic lights needed to allow lorries to cross it.”

Cllr Chris Willmore, who was at the meeting to represent Yate residents affected by the dust, said: “We have been fighting for 30 years, we want an agreement that gives us certainty the stockpiles will go – not necessarily tomorrow, but on an agreed scheme.”

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