A LETTER from minerals company Breedon Aggregates to allay Clearwell residents’ fears over plans to expand Stowe Hill Quarry contains wildly inaccurate information, claims the parish council.

The mailshot to householders in the area around Stowe Hill Quarry says the company has applied for planning permission to extend the extraction site by 7.37 hectares.

But Newland Parish Council Clerk Richard Crighton says the planning application clearly states that the extension area is actually 13.56 hectares.

He said: ”One can only speculate as to why Breedon Aggregates Southern has published inaccurate information and ’downplayed’ the area of expansion, but two things emerge from this.

“The first is that it could be seen as a deliberate attempt to hoodwink the public which we think unlikely for a company of such standing.

“Secondly, if this is a genuine error then how much credence can be given to the mass of statistics and figures contained within the planning application documents?

“Breedon Aggregates Southern has recently issued a mailshot to properties in the area which would be affected by this expansion - we are not exactly sure which area they have targeted - presumably in an attempt to counter any objections which may be raised and to ‘assure’ resident they need have no concerns.

“It comes as a considerable surprise therefore to note that BAS state that "...the quarry extension is 7.37 hectares in size..."

“In fact the extension area will be almost twice that size at 13.56 hectares as quoted in several places within the full application documentation.

“By using hectares as the unit of area, which is probably the industry norm, rather than acres which most people are more familiar with, the lower number can influence people’s imagining of the actual size of the expansion.

“So, in fact it is not 7.37 hectares it is actually 32.5 acres.”