Tarmac has announced plans to extend its Maxey gravel quarry by an astonishing 115 hectares. Although the development is welcomed by many as an opportunity to create a haven for wildlife and improve public access, others have expressed concerns regarding irreversible changes to the landscape, and subsidence caused by a reduced water table.
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Maxey Quarry - proposed sites
Located at Maxey Crossing, between the South Drain, Etton and Helpston, the detailed planning application will be submitted to the City Council during August 2009. Tarmac’s plans were made public at a recent exhibition at Etton where the development was described as progressive working and restoration.
Tarmac have stated, “the planning application will not be seeking to vary the output, operational hours, nor any other environmental controls at Maxey Quarry”. Access will remain via the existing road route and the new workings will use the existing plant and conveyors.
Maxey Crossing has already been identified as a possible site for mineral extraction, but planning permission is still required and the public will be able to comment on the application when it’s eventually made in a few weeks time. Full details will be available on the Tribune web site.
Another site, Maxey East, between the Etton Road and the A15 bypass, has also been suggested as an area for sand and gravel extraction. This site has been identified, as a preferred option, in the ‘new’ planning system that commences from 2011 and runs until 2026.
Maxey East is also included as a potential site for inert waste landfill. Inert materials are defined as ‘waste that does not significantly decompose or rot’. However, use of this site for landfill could pose a risk since the site lies directly above a major public water supply aquifer - one of Anglian Water’s boreholes is no more than 650m from the site. Peter Hiller, Northborough ward councillor, said Maxey East was, at this stage, only a proposal and he was not concerned about the landfill materials, as every step would be taken to ensure the waste is safe and inert.
Sand and gravel is an essential ingredient in many construction projects, from roads to houses, and Cambridgeshire requires something like 3 million tonnes per year. According to Tarmac, Maxey Crossing site will contribute a total of around 3.2 million tonnes and Maxey East another 2 million tonnes, and this is expected to last for 15 years.
Etton parish council has welcomed the proposal to increase public access to the restored quarries. However, concerns have been raised that pumping at the quarry could lower the water table surrounding the site, causing subsidence, affecting the foundations of buildings in the village. Etton is right to be concerned; work by archaeologists back in the early 1980’s demonstrated that the water table was lowered almost immediately following pumping at Maxey quarries. Dr Francis Prior noted, at the Etton Causewayed enclosure excavations, the severe effect that nearby pumping had on the preservation of waterlogged organic materials. Work at other UK sites has shown that groundwater levels can be reduced as far away as 500m, or more, from quarries. De-watering could also affect the preservation of archaeological remains at sites surrounding the quarries.
On a personal note, Tarmac, and others, frequently use the word ‘restore’ – but can we call what’s been done at Maxey and Etton restoration? As a child, I spent many summer holidays exploring the countryside around Etton and have a particular liking for the flat, expansive, open countryside around our villages and view what’s been done to the landscape between Etton and Maxey with some disappointment.
Whilst I support the principle of enhancing wildlife habitats and improving public access, I do hope any restoration is, visually, more in keeping with the surrounding landscape.
Bob Randall
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