County Durham Waste Local Plan.

15 Site Specific Policies.

Thrislington Quarry.

Allocation for waste facilities.

Grid ref:  4314 5330

Area: 96 hectares

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Description.

15.1 Thrislington Quarry is a very large limestone quarry south of Cornforth and west of the A1(M).  The area with permission for extraction is in excess of 100 hectares; approximately 28 hectares of unworked land consented for extraction remains.  Mineral extraction has left a relatively flat quarry floor, at around 30-40 metres below the original ground level. 

15.2 As yet there is no agreed scheme for the reclamation of the quarry, and to date the only infilling in the quarry void has involved the disposal of waste stone from the quarry in the north west corner of the site.  Also, in the long term there remains the prospect of extended quarrying operations to the east of A1(M).  An allocation for an eastern extension is made under Policy M56 of the County Durham Minerals Local Plan.  Operations may require access through the existing void.

Key Issues.

Location

15.3 Thrislington is located relatively centrally within the more populated eastern part of County Durham.a It lies approximately 1.5 km east of Ferryhill. The villages of West Cornforth and Bishop Middleham are approximately 0.5 km to the north and southeast respectively. Spennymoor is around 5 km to the west and the other main towns of Durham City, Newton Aycliffe and Bishop Auckland are located within 10 km of the site. In terms of the proximity principle therefore, the site is well located in relation to potential sources of waste material.  However, detailed proposals will need to identify actual sources of waste to be managed at the site and demonstrate that the proposal accords with the proximity principle through avoiding transporting material over long distances and contributes to sustainable waste management in County Durham. Thrislington Quarry is capable of accommodating considerable capacity for waste recovery, recycling and composting, currently estimated to be around 210,000 tonnes per annum, and potentially landfill, although the precise type, mix and scale of each component in the allocation is subject to the proposals being developed in further detail.  However, any detailed proposal will need to be subject to an evaluation against a range of criteria, including the provisions of the Habitats Regulations 1994, the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000) and the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations (England and Wales) 1999.

Local Amenity

15.4 Residential properties lie to the north of the quarry, in West Cornforth, off Garmondsway Road and Stobbs Cross Road.  These dwellings are over 200m from the quarry void and are screened from it by screening mounds. However detailed proposals would need to take account of the potential impact upon the amenity of these dwellings and outline any mitigation measures that may be necessary to protect residential amenity.

Traffic and accessibility

15.5 The quarry is well located in relation to the strategic road network by virtue of the West Cornforth by-pass and the new eastern access to the A177.  There are already a significant number of vehicular movements in the area surrounding the quarry and the existing access points are heavily used.  Any intensification of operations at the site will impact upon the area.  Detailed proposals would need to address the issue of vehicle circulation within the site and vehicle movements into and out of the site and on the local road network, and demonstrate how the increased movements can be satisfactorily accommodated.

15.6 The East Coast Main Line railway runs along the western boundary of the quarry and works complex, and is currently accessed by a railhead which is linked to the quarry by means of a tunnel.  The promotion of rail access as a means of sustainable transport will need to be balanced against the potential for the use of rail to attract waste from longer distances, contrary to the proximity principle.

Landscape

15.7 The site is visually contained and the quarry floor is well screened from most public vantage points.

Public Rights of Way

15.8 All public rights of way follow the perimeter of the site.

Nature Conservation

15.9 The Thrislington candidate Special Area of Conservation, also comprising a Site of Special Scientific Interest and Thrislington Plantation National Nature Reserve adjoins the southern edge of the quarry void, housing a number of scarce plant and insect species.  This habitat must remain undisturbed by any development of the quarry, in line with the provisions of the Habitat Regulations 1994, which prevents development unless it can be demonstrated that the features of interest will not be damaged; and the Wildlife and Countryside Act 2000 as amended by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, which places a duty on authorities to both protect and enhance the features of interest of the SSSI.

Geology

15.10 The marl slate heaps within the quarry are of interest due to their fossilised flora and fauna and have County Geological Site status.  It is unlikely, however, that the development of recovery facilities at Thrislington would be compromised by or would impact upon the geological interest of these heaps.

Archaeology

15.11 There is recorded archaeology in the east of the site.  Assessment and evaluation would be required to ascertain the potential of any undisturbed areas of the site.  Where quarrying has already taken place, archaeological interest is likely to have been completely removed.

Groundwater

15.12 The site is located within a major aquifer and the proposal may at least in part be located below the natural water table.  Permitted quarrying operations will take a substantial part of the void below the water table and consequently detailed proposals will need to take this into account.  Issues to consider are:

• the effectiveness and long term sustainability of the water control; and
• leachate management

The Environment Agency objected to the designation of the site for landfill due to lack of submitted information.

Quarry Reclamation

15.13 No reclamation scheme has been agreed for any part of the quarry and no progressive reclamation has so far been undertaken.  Infilling with waste is not essential to achieve the reclamation of the site.  Whilst waste recovery facilities may occupy a significant proportion of the worked out area of the quarry floor, progressive reclamation of the remaining area of the quarry void will still be required and should not be delayed unnecessarily.  Detailed proposals will need to demonstrate this will not be prejudiced. 

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