Villagers’ fury over ‘restoration’ plans for South Downs quarry

Villagers in Washington say they are ‘dismayed and outraged’ by proposals for the future of Rock Common Quarry.

Quarry company Dudman has operated the site under lease from landowners The Wiston Estate for the past 10 years.

Now both are seeking planning approval from West Sussex County Council to extend the time permitted for sand extraction so all the remaining reserves of sand can be worked and processed.

But they also want to change restoration plans for the site. Initially they had planned to create a lake by filling the empty quarry with deep water - but now want to fill it with builders’ rubble instead.

They are seeking approval to import and stockpile ‘inert materials.’

They say they now consider creating a deep body of water would be ‘unsafe and unsustainable.’

They also say that three nearby, now-closed, domestic waste landfill sites could cause ‘significant contamination of the lake.’

But local residents say the landowners and company’s proposals would have ‘a massive detrimental effect’ over a wide area and over a long period of time. The sand extraction itself is expected to continue for 8-10 years.

Chanctonbury Landfill Action Group chairman Russ Fowler said it would mean many more traffic and pollution problems in the area.

“Five hundred plus lorry movements per day will increase noise, dust and general pollution for the next 50 years plus and clog roads for miles around.

“The Storrington Road is already one of the most polluted roads in the UK.

“The risk of polluting the aquifer that runs underneath the quarry and supplies fresh drinking water to homes along the coast from Brighton to Portsmouth, is seriously under threat from this application.”

Meanwhile, scores of local residents have submitted letters of objection to the county council.

One said she was ‘dismayed and outraged’ by the proposals, adding: “This is not restoration, it is landfill.”

Another warned: “It will affect the lives of many for decades.”

And another said: “It would cause untold traffic chaos to already overburdened roads.”

And yet another added: “The sheer thought of a landfill site fills us with dread.”

Objections have also been put forward by Ashington Parish Council which says that the proposals would add up to 500 extra lorries a day in the area putting ‘enormous pressure on the Washington roundabout.”

Councillors also say that the quarry currently pumps water out into Honeybridge Stream which flows through Ashington and a full assessment of the impact should take place.

The also say that previously agreed restoration plans for a lake would be beneficial to wildlife, adding: “There is no reason to move away from this.

“There are many successful examples of quarries becoming nature reserves.”