Plans to dramatically expand a quarry south of Norwich have been put on display, as developers look to allay fears about the environmental impact of the extension.

Lafarge Aggregates, owners of the Mangreen Quarry, alongside the A140 Ipswich Road, near Dunston, are finalising a planning application for an extension of 90.6 hectares to the current site.

The proposed extension could yield around 3m tonnes of high quality sand and gravel which, at a typical output of 180,000 tonnes a year, would lead to an extraction life of 18 years for the site.

The extraction would be carried out in 16 phases and would eventually see each phase area restored as green agricultural land – with several other attempts to improve the ecology and minimise the visual and audio impact of the whole site.

Lafarge opened the current quarry in early 2010 following the completion of work at quarries at Easton and Whitlingham.

It is the work at Whitlingham, which is now part of Whitlingham Broad, that Mangreen site manager Colin Ellis refers to when asked about public concerns regarding the environmental impact.

Mr Ellis was also site manager for the Whitlingham quarry, where work was started in 1990, and feels Lafarge is making responsible preparations to excavate the Mangreen extension.

He said: 'If you've been to Whitlingham then it speaks for itself. We think that we have covered all aspects.

'People should come along here and discuss any issues they have with the plans because this is a preliminary stage of the extension plans.'

The extension will bring a limited increase in traffic for the site, as a conveyor system will carry the excavated soil north, to the base at the current site.

Approximately 1.2 million tonnes is set to be excavated at the current site by 2020, with planning permission for an inert material recycling facility and a ready-mixed concrete plant already in place as well.

A public consultation was held in the Mangreen Trust Orchard Rooms at Mangreen Hall North yesterday and the exhibition boards are set to be displayed on www.lafarge.co.uk from the end of next week.

For more information, or to arrange a discussion with Mr Ellis, call 01992 512764.