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Councillors to scrutinise plans for contentious quarry

Councillors will consider plans to infill an illicit borrow pit at Bruntlands, Whitecairns. Picture by Kenny Elrick
Councillors will consider plans to infill an illicit borrow pit at Bruntlands, Whitecairns. Picture by Kenny Elrick

A long-running dispute over works at a controversial Aberdeenshire quarry could come a step closer to being resolved tomorrow.

Councillors will consider plans to infill an illicit borrow pit at Bruntlands, Whitecairns.

Planners have recommended the plans for approval in a report due to go before the Formartine area committee.

However, the report states that permission would only be granted subject to the receipt of a satisfactory noise impact assessment which would have to be agreed by environmental health officers and implemented in full.

The work would also have to be completed within a year of permission being granted and operations at the site would be limited to between 7am-7pm Monday to Friday, and 7am-noon on Saturday.

The report further states that work could not commence until a dust suppression system had been provided on site.

The application to infill the borrow pit was originally submitted in May but was deferred at the last area committee to allow committee members to visit the site.

That visit has now taken place.

Whitecairns residents have been complaining about activities on the site for years.

In March, Aberdeenshire Council issued a temporary stop notice after uncovering unauthorised work was being carried out in part of the quarry.

Ellon-based Jim Jamieson Ardlethen Developments had been granted planning permission to carry out some heavy work to the land, including the creation of hard standings.

But an investigation uncovered the firm had formed a borrow pit at the top of the hill and that material had been extracted below the approved slope profiles.

In the past year, planning officers have responded to 26 individual complaints regarding the site.

Most related to dust, noise, blasting, operating outwith agreed hours, continued unauthorised excavation and blasting in the borrow pit, lorry movements and burying waste.

With the exception of the issues addressed by the temporary stop notice, no further breaches of planning control were identified that required enforcement action.