Plans to dig a new quarry on the outskirts of a small Broads village have been unveiled.
Developers want to extract gravel from farmland in Haddiscoe - which is close to the River Waveney - for use in local construction projects, including the upgrading of the A47 and the Western Link.
The proposals are likely to prove controversial as an earlier bid to open a quarry in the village was turned down in 2014 following an outcry from locals.
A meeting of concerned residents is to be held at 7.30pm today, at Haddiscoe Village Hall.
Haddiscoe Quarry Site (Image: Sonya Duncan/Newsquest)
If given the go-ahead, the new 52-acre quarry would be dug on Manor Farm, next to Crab Apple Lane, and would be in use for seven years.
Breedon Trading, the applicant, is a supplier of concrete and cement. It operates 350 sites in the UK.
The firm says there is huge local demand for its material, including for projects such as the dualling of two stretches of the A47, the proposed Norwich Western Link, dozens of new schools being built and even the new nuclear power station at Sizewell.
Over the course of an eighth year, restoration work would be carried out at the Haddiscoe site, with shrubs planted to encourage biodiversity to return.
The village has a population of around 500, with some living within 55 metres of the proposed quarry.
The previously rejected plans - put forward by another company - were larger in scale.
They included a second field next to Haddiscoe's 11th century St Mary's church and envisaged a 21-year operating period, with a processing plant on site.
The project provoked widespread opposition in the community, with a coachload of protestors bussed to County Hall to voice their anger at a crucial meeting.
Norfolk County Council turned down the scheme, but developers appealed the decision with the government's planning inspectorate.
However, officials also turned down the scheme, ruling it would lead to a "moderate adverse change to the landscape quality for the 21-year duration and significant harm to [the church]".
Haddiscoe quarry planning notification (Image: Sonya Duncan)
They also raised concerns about noise, dust and traffic.
The new scheme does not involve an on-site processing plant.
Instead extracted gravel will be taken four miles away by HGV to a quarry at Norton Subcourse.
There are four listed buildings within 250 metres of the farm, including the Grade II listed Haddiscoe War memorial and the Grade I church.
Once restored, parts of the site will have a marshy habitat which could be used to hold water to prevent flooding elsewhere.
In plans submitted to Norfolk County Council, the applicant said the scheme complies with national planning policies and the government's approach to sustainable mineral development
The document adds: "The proposal will still see the site restored at the earliest opportunity with a scheme which offers biodiversity benefits."
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