Plans for quarry from land by Herefordshire’s A49

Plans have been put forward to quarry sand and gravel from land alongside Herefordshire’s A49.

Once quarried, the 21-hectare site between Wellington and Marden would then be turned into a wetland and grassland habitat for wildlife within 10 years.

Three zones within the site, currently an arable field, would be successively worked and then restored. A bund formed of cleared topsoil would screen the site from the adjacent A49 dual carriageway.

A mineral processing plant, lagoons, a weighbridge and weighbridge office, and a staff cabin would also be built. It would require new road access onto Haywood Lane, also known as Orchard Green.

A hydraulic excavator would extract the sand and gravel, which would then be washed and screened on-site before being distributed.

This would require up to 20 loads on 20-tonne lorries daily when the site is in full operation, when it will employ up to 10 staff.

An air quality and dust assessment concluded that the impact of these “is anticipated to be negligible”.

The site adjoins the Heywood Industrial Estate, and also the separately owned Tarmac Wellington sand and gravel quarry to the southeast.

The bid is by Herefordshire Quarries of Lugg Bridge, near Hereford, which specialises in recycling aggregates from demolition and construction work.