April/May 2007

31 May 2007 - Committee members continue to gather information regarding other local and remote quarry sites, the one in Whitte/Clayton-le-Woods being a prime example and recently in the news. Donations continue to come in via direct postal cheques to the Council and door-to-door collections and fundraising totals are rising.

17 May 2007 - The Quarry Committee met to hear some very exciting news. A call had confirmed earlier in the day that a generous large local employer had offered to pay for a Barrister to assist the village in fighting this Planning Inquiry. The fund raising does still need to continue though to pay for all the other items which we will need such as the solicitors fees, the specialist air quality reports we have commissioned, newsletters to inform residents of the progress and when to attend the Public Inquiry and, of course, when the date is set for. This is indeed the best news we could have ever hoped for and will mean that the absolute best case can be presented brought to the Planning Inquiry.

11 May 2007 - The Quarry Committee will meet again on the 17 May to plan further actions which are required.

May 2007 - Generous donation cheques from residents have begun to arrive at the Council offices and some volunteer collectors have begun to knock on doors to request donations.

25 April 2007 - The 'Sandstorm' press release with full colour photograph appeared in the Chorley Guardian.

19 April 2007 - The Statement of Case was submitted to the Planning Inspectorate today - copy here.

16 April 2007 - Press release " SANDSTORM DUE TO ARRIVE IN EUXTON "

11 April 2007 - The Residents Update newsletter has been posted on this website, but it has now gone to the printers. Distribution will be as soon as possible.

4 April 2007 - The Quarry Committee met last night and commissioned work to assist to fight Tarmac at the Planning Inquiry (details in the minutes below). Also approved a 'Residents Update' newsletter to go out to the whole village.

3 April 2007 - The Quarry Committee will meet to discuss the submission for the Planning Inspector by the deadline of 20 April and discuss and decide on any additional assistance required. Minutes

23 March 2007 - The Planning Inspectorate has communicated with the Council about submitting its written statement of case by 20 April 2007. A committee meeting will be called.

15 March 2007 - The Parish Council set up a committee to work through the procedures and requirements for the Planning Inquiry with ERASE and allocated the budget.

8 March 2007 - The Parish Council agreed to submit itself, with ERASE, as a Rule 6 Party to enable it to receive and defend points against the Planning Inquiry by Tarmac to have a sand quarry at Runshaw in Euxton. The Parish Council agreed a budget.

March 2007

23 March 2007 - The Planning Inspectorate has communicated with the Council about submitting its written statement of case by 20 April 2007.

15 March 2007 - The Parish Council set up a committee to work through the procedures and requirements for the Planning Inquiry with ERASE and allocated the budget.

8 March 2007 - The Parish Council agreed to submit itself, with ERASE, as a Rule 6 Party to enable it to receive and defend points against the Planning Inquiry by Tarmac to have a sand quarry at Runshaw in Euxton. The Parish Council agreed a budget.

Earlier in March

The Parish Council and ERASE has appealled to the Planning Inquiry to become a Rule 6 Party candidate. This status allows us access to the papers exchanged between all other Rule 6 Parties, Tarmac and Lancashire County Council. Confirmation of this status will be notified to us within a couple of weeks and we will have then approximately 4 weeks to produce a Written Statement identifying the areas which we will be presenting evidence on.

Soon there will be an appeal going out to residents for assistance with the fighting fund to pay for the expenses which will be incurred for producing research materials and representation for the Planning Inquiry itself.

The Inquiry will most likely be in approximately 6 to 8 months time - August 2007 at the earlier (although these are guideline dates only). It is estimated to last for 3 weeks and will be held at Woodlands Conference Centre, Southport Road, Chorley.

February 2007

Tarmac have lodged an appeal to the Secretary of State against Lancashire County Council's (LCC) refusal of their Planning Application to quarry sand at Euxton. A Public Inquiry will be held into the appeal - at a date and venue to be decided. (Tarmac's Grounds for Appeal).

Additional comments can be sent to the Case Officer, Mr Nicholas Patch at:
Room 3/18A, Temple Quay House, 2 The Square, Temple Quay, Bristol, BS1 6PN. Correspondence should be sent (3 copies) by the 14th of March 2007 quoting reference APP/Q2371/A/07/2035175/NWF

Copies of previous correspondence should have been sent to the Case Officer by LCC, but we are very keen for residents to write with any new information that may help to affect the outcome in our favour.
In particular, local traffic conditions and the effects on health of local residents by dust pollution (PM10's) and fumes from traffic emissions would help our case.

ERASE will be looking to submit more information to the Case Officer, but as always, further help, local knowledge and legal or professional experience of dealing with Public Inquiries can only help our case. Anyone who can offer help should get in touch via the Parish Council.

We have already achieved two major decisions in our favour and feel very aggrieved that we have to fight yet another battle against this quarry that will have a devastating effect on the lives of everyone in the village for the next 20 years. We are also concerned that at the Inquiry, Tarmac will be appealing against a decision made by the Democratically elected County Councillors - but LCC's case may be put forward by the Planning Officers who recommended acceptance of this application.

We do not want to fall at this final hurdle and we are working on our plans and would urge all residents to write to the Case Officer with immediate effect to underline that as with the previous two decisions, this quarry should not be sited in the middle of a large and growing residential area.

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January 2007

Latest news is that Tarmac has informed they will be appealing. This is a bitter blow for residents and ERASE who fought so hard to spare the village from having a Sand Quarry not only on its doorstep but running right through the middle of the village. This is truly sad news.

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December 2006

The residents of Euxton were jubilant following Lancashire County Council's Development Control Committee turned down Tarmac's plans for a massive sand and silt quarry in Euxton at their meeting in late September.

ERASE made a 30 minute presentation to the Committee two days before the vote was taken. Tarmac also made a presentation, but were late turning up and failed to address the key issues of traffic congestion, pollution and health risks that ERASE had highlighted.

Then at the dramatic meeting on the 21st ERASE had a further six speakers including two residents. Wendy Gudger Planning Officer at Chorley Borough Council, County Councillor Mark Perks, Peter Goldsworthy the Leader of Chorley Borough Council and Euxton Councillor also MP Lindsay Hoyle. ERASE would like to pass on their thanks to all of the speakers and to the members of the Development Control Committee for their considered decision following a detailed debate.

It is the view of ERASE that this massive quarry is quite simply in the wrong location, immediately to the west of a large and growing residential area. The Committee Members took into account the views of the 5,000+ objectors who were clearly worried about the effects of the additional HGV's travelling through the village and the dangers associated with fine dust pollution from the quarry.

Having had their requests rejected both by the Government appointed Inspector at the Public Inquiry in 1998 and now by Lancashire County Council, ERASE now urge Tarmac to take the honourable course of action, rip up this application and look for alternative sites with less Environmental impacts.

ERASE will also lobby LCC to remove this site from its Mineral Plan, because of the problems & level of objections associated with it. The village has been blighted by this plan for almost 10 years now and it should now be ERASED forever!

Report by ERASE

Following on from the above report, members of the Parish Council and ERASE met very recently with a Senior Officer of Lancashire Council Council Development Control to fact-find about what could happen next, following LCC's decision to refuse the application.

There are three options available for Tarmac in the near future:
- one being not appeal the decision and so not continue persuing the site for a quarry in Euxton
- another being, Tarmac can appeal the decision
- or, Tarmac does have the right to submit another planning application, but that application would have to be 'substantially' different to the original to be allowed.

Tarmac has until 2 May 2007 to lodge its intention to appeal - so, let us all wish for silence.

Report by Parish Council

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21 September 2006
At the Development Control Meeting on the 21 September 2006, the Committee decided to refuse this planning application, the full text and reasons for its refusal will be decided at the next meeting to be held in November.

The Committee refused this application, despite the officers of LCC recommending to accept it and their reasoning can be seen on the Agenda report attached here (this is a large document of 49 pages and may take a moment to load).

The Parish Council and ERASE would like to thank a number of people who helped enourmously in protesting against this application.

September 2006
The planning application from Tarmac for the proposed quarry at Runshaw is likely to be listed on Lancashire County Council's (LCC) Planning Committee for the 21 September 2006.

ERASE have an appointment booked to present, prior to the actual meeting, its objections on behalf of residents and the Parish Council to the Committee. ERASE have held a number of meetings with Officers from Chorley Borough Council (CBC) who are also planning to object to the proposal.

The main thrust of the objection concerns the threat to health from fine dust particulates and the increase in Heavy Goods Traffic, particularly on the Dawbers Lane, Wigan Road and Balshaw Lane route through the village. A third point, is the cumulative effects of pollution and particulates from these HGV's on top of the dust being generated from the quarry.

LCC is awaiting receipt of CBC's comments on the possible effects of dust in the area. CBC has commissioned an expert report. This is to assess in more detail Tarmac's overall approach to its impact assessment and results, also to identify possible pollutants of concern and air quality issues to form part of CBC's response. The envisaged increases in fine dust particles called PM10's are of particular concern to CBC and for the residents of Euxton. This was reported in the local press earlier in the year, the Chorley area already suffers from an Asthma rate 1.5 times higher than the North West average.

LCC is also awaiting a response from Tarmac as to how it would replace a habitat which would be lost during the quarrying. A pond would be destroyed which currently contains Great Crested Newts. These newts are a protected species and Tarmac has to demonstrate how it would create an equally friendly habitat in an alternative location and how the newts would be relocated.

A report by the Chief Planning Officer of LCC will be submitted for the Planning Committee to consider on the 21 September. This report will be ready 5 days before for anyone to read on LCC's website. It will contain a recommendation for approval or refusal by the Chief Planning Officer and the reasons for that decision (link to see the report at the bottom). It is then up to the Committee to consider all the issues raised by the application, its objectors and supporters, the reports submitted by the relevant departments such as Highways and Chorley Borough Council and then make their decision.

The Committee will be making site visits to the area to view the roads which will have to take the additional HGV traffic, the proposed site and its present environments and location for the site entrance, they will also be shown around an existing Tarmac quarry in another area.

LCC could delay listing this application until the next programmed meeting date of 1 November, if it does not receive all the information it needs or requested from Tarmac and CBC to enable the Committee to make an informed decision. Members of the public can attend Development Control Committee Meetings, but are not allowed to speak.

Link to see the Chief Planning Officer report, on or after the 14 September (if meeting takes place on 21 September):
www.lancashire.gov.uk/council/meetings/committees/
then choose the 'Development Control Committee' and you will see an 'Agenda' column, choose the meeting date in this column to see the attached reports.

Report by
Clerk to Euxton Parish Council
with input from ERASE

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August 2006
The planning application from Tarmac for the proposed quarry at Runshaw is likely to be listed on Lancashire County Council's (LCC) Planning Committee for the 21 September 2006.

ERASE have an appointment booked to present, prior to the actual meeting, its objections on behalf of residents and the Parish Council to the Committee. ERASE have held a number of meetings with Officers from Chorley Borough Council (CBC) who are also planning to object to the proposal.

The main thrust of the objection concerns the threat to health from fine dust particulates and the increase in Heavy Goods Traffic, particularly on the Dawbers Lane, Wigan Road and Balshaw Lane route through the village. A third point, is the cumulative effects of pollution and particulates from these HGV's on top of the dust being generated from the quarry.

LCC is awaiting receipt of CBC's comments on the possible effects of dust in the area. CBC has commissioned an expert report. This is to assess in more detail Tarmac's overall approach to its impact assessment and results, also to identify possible pollutants of concern and air quality issues to form part of CBC's response. The envisaged increases in fine dust particles called PM10's are of particular concern to CBC and for the residents of Euxton. This was reported in the local press earlier in the year, the Chorley area already suffers from an Asthma rate 1.5 times higher than the North West average.

LCC is also awaiting a response from Tarmac as to how it would replace a habitat which would be lost during the quarrying. A pond would be destroyed which currently contains Great Crested Newts. These newts are a protected species and Tarmac has to demonstrate how it would create an equally friendly habitat in an alternative location and how the newts would be relocated.

A report by the Chief Planning Officer of LCC will be submitted for the Planning Committee to consider on the 21 September. This report will be ready 5 days before for anyone to read on LCC's website. It will contain a recommendation for approval or refusal by the Chief Planning Officer and the reasons for that decision (link to see the report at the bottom). It is then up to the Committee to consider all the issues raised by the application, its objectors and supporters, the reports submitted by the relevant departments such as Highways and Chorley Borough Council and then make their decision.

The Committee will be making site visits to the area to view the roads which will have to take the additional HGV traffic, the proposed site and its present environments and location for the site entrance, they will also be shown around an existing Tarmac quarry in another area.

LCC could delay listing this application until the next programmed meeting date of 1 November, if it does not receive all the information it needs or requested from Tarmac and CBC to enable the Committee to make an informed decision. Members of the public can attend Development Control Committee Meetings, but are not allowed to speak.

Link to see the Chief Planning Officer report, on or after the 14 September (if meeting takes place on 21 September): Link Here

Report by
Clerk to Euxton Parish Council
with input from ERASE

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June 2006
Tarmac have submitted changes to their application which comprise moving the entrance to the site a few hundred yards to the east following objections from Lancashire County Council (LCC) and a number of local residents.

This does not affect ERASEs overall objection to the proposal - the site will overwhelm the village and poses great dangers to the local population in terms of increased heavy traffic and additional air pollution. Quite simply, such a development should not be sited so close to a large & growing residential area.

A group of residents in Adlington have fought and won a similar case this month, albeit on a smaller scale, and we are hoping for a similar outcome.

The next date that Tarmac's application could be heard by the Planning Committee is on the 9th of August. ERASE have applied to present their case to the Committee in advance of the meeting. We have also held talks with Chorley Borough Council which is objecting on similar grounds to ourselves and also plan to present to the committee.

Chorley Borough have the responsibility for environmental health in the area and is very concerned about the potential dangers that the quarrying and increased traffic would release high levels of fine dust (PM10's) into the atmosphere in an area that already has a higher than average incidence of asthma - especially in the young.

E.R.A.S.E

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18 April 2006
The next Development Control meeting is mid June and the application may possibly now be scheduled to be considered at this meeting.

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March 2006

Following on from the report in the last newsletter that Lancashire County Council (LCC) was awaiting a response to the queries raised to Tarmac following the submission of a planning application for a sand extraction quarry at Runshaw in Euxton.
The response has now been received by LCC and they are now preparing a letter which is to be posted out to everyone who contacted them regarding the quarry application.

The letter will contain all the new information and give consultees a minimum of 2 weeks, possibly up to 4 weeks or longer, to respond with comments.

The next LCC Development Control meetings are the 5 April and 17 May. The report required by LCC for the 5 April meeting would not give them much time, so it is unlikely that the quarry application will be on the agenda for that meeting, but will likely be on the 17 May agenda.

E.R.A.S.E.'s comments to the Tarmac response: 'WE'VE HEARD IT ALL BEFORE!'
Tarmac have, at long last, responded to the objections raised last year by the residents of Euxton, Euxton Parish Council, Chorley Borough Council etc. Despite the amount of time taken, they raise very few new points - for example;
Transport - they conclude 'the low increases in traffic flows are unlikely to significantly affect local amenity.' Obviously Tarmac's highly paid consultants can not tell the difference between a mini and a fully laden HGV clattering over potholes as they thunder through our village!

Dust - Tarmac only focuses on the large dust particles that 'will largely deposit within 100m of their source.' We have raised the dangers of the finer dust particles (PM10's) & the higher than average incidence of asthma (especially in the young) in the Chorley area. Tarmac largely ignore this point, saying it is not clear 'what the predicted effects of the current proposal might be.'
Noise - Tarmac state that the effect would be screened 'by noise levels emanating from traffic using the M6' - rather than the quarry adding to existing noise levels.

Ecology - we believe that the quarry would ruin our local environment for the next 20 years, Tarmac say they 'would form a network of substantial wildlife corridors.

Landscape - again Tarmac believes the area would be 'enhanced' by the quarry as restoration proposals would provide 'a proactive and ecologically valuable landscape.'

Lancashire County Council may be taken in by Tarmac's wordy response - but the residents of Euxton have heard it all before and do not believe a word of it. If LCC happen to doubt their response, Tarmac then includes the following threat…..

LCC have to provide their share of the minerals quota and the Runshaw Quarry is a proven deposit. No other sites have been identified (as no-one has looked for alternatives!) therefore LCC are duty bound to pass this application - no matter what the environmental and health costs are to the local population.

ERASE and Euxton Parish Council urge residents to write to the elected County Councillors on the Planning Committee re-stating their views that a sand quarry (and possible cement works) is a wholly inappropriate development immediately to the west of such a large growing residential area. Who will be held responsible for the long-term effects on the health and welfare of the local population?

After the Public inquiry of 1998, the Inspector concluded that the 'proposed extraction would be likely to have a significant and permanent detrimental impact on the landscape' - and that the 'proposal would have an adverse impact on the environment and quality of life of local residents.' Although LCC is now stating that the Inspectors findings 'are now history' - ERASE believes that these quotes are even more relevant today given the increased numbers that would be affected in the local residential and business community.

B Carlin, E.R.A.S.E

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20 February 2006
Following on from the new of 13 February the Council has received a copy of the response document from Tarmac to Lancashire Councty Council which are attached just on the right.

Clerk to the Council

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December 2005
As reported in the last newsletter, Lancashire County Council (LCC) has not yet made its decision on the application from Tarmac for a sand extraction quarry at Runshaw in Euxton.

The County Council, following receipt of the majority of consultation responses, wrote to Tarmac on the 10 August with a number of issues that had emerged. LCC requested Tarmac to address these issues so it would be able to fully assess Tarmacs proposals.

Included in this list were questions about the "Need for the Mineral, issues on Traffic & Highways, Amenity, Groundwater, Air Quality, Ecology and Restoration/Landscape".

Tarmac is aiming to have this application considered at the next LCC Development Control Committee on 31 January 2006 but its response to the issues has (at the time of writing) not been received by LCC. If the application misses this schedule, the next meeting is 22 March 2006.

When the information is received by LCC from Tarmac it will be advertised in the newspaper so interested parties can view it and respond to it before it is considered at the Development Control Committee. The Parish Council has requested a copy of this, once it has been received by LCC.

Responses, objections or correspondence about the application from residents are still being accepted by LCC.

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September 2005
Lancashire County Council has not yet made its decision on the application from Tarmac for a sand extraction quarry at Runshaw in Euxton. The application will now not be determined until one of its future meetings, either 5 October or 29 November. Until then, the Council is still accepting responses, objections or correspondence from residents. So, if you haven't already - send in your objections...

Recently you may have read reports in the newspapers that Chorley Borough Council has objected to Lancashire County Council against the Tarmac quarry application.

One of the major objections raised against this proposal is the effect it will have on the air quality in Euxton.

The minerals industry has traditionally focussed on the effects of large dust particles - that can be seen and measured. More recently, it has been found that it is the finer particulates (PM10) that can be inhaled, that are the most critical for health.

'Particulate air pollution can be associated with a range of effects on health including effects on the respiratory and cardiovascular systems, asthma and mortality.' DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) Air Quality Strategy - Published 2003. New research findings has led DEFRA to issue new, more stringent, standards for these fine particulates with an annual mean of 20 ug/m3 to be achieved by December 2010, 4 years into the proposed quarry's lifespan.

ERASE is very concerned that Tarmac's 'Air Quality Assessment' for the Runshaw Quarry dated March 2005, makes no reference to the new guidelines even though they were published in 2003, but bases its report on the previous objectives.

The current figure Tarmac's study quotes for PM10 concentration for the site of the quarry is 19.4 ug/m3, only just below the DEFRA standard and this is prior to any quarrying taking place! By implication, the area of Euxton, to the east of the M6, with its current traffic problems and high levels of construction activity (eg Buckshaw Village), must already be above this level.

In an area of emerging science, where the Government, and Europe, are imposing even more stringent pollution standards, it cannot be acceptable to impose a quarry of this size on the residential area of Euxton in the knowledge that from start it will be over the European guideline standards for particulate concentrations.

There is a history of respiratory illnesses contracted over time in our industrial past (eg. from coal dust, asbestos etc). Should this quarry go ahead, a whole new hazard of dust from the quarry mixed with additional HGV exhaust emissions will be inflicted on a whole generation of residents, in an area that already has high levels of asthma and respiratory problems.

This Application comprises a plan to quarry 4.32 million tonnes of sand over the next 16 years on a site stretching from Dawbers Lane (A581) to the south of Euxton to alongside Euxton

Villa playing fields, just to the south of Runshaw College, Leyland.

ERASE (Euxton Residents Against Sand Extraction) are objecting strongly to this Application because of its proximity to a large residential area, just to the east of the site and on a number of other points - loss of amenity and agricultural land, increased HGV traffic and its effect on the road system, pollution, dust, noise and more.

One of the major areas of concerns is the effect on the health of local people over the 20 year (including restoration) lifespan of the proposed quarry.

Much of the information in the September update was kindly supplied by Borough and County Councillor Mark Perks.

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