Quarry plans raise fears over road safety

Concerns have been raised over plans to develop a quarry in Lincolnshire and the impact it would have on traffic.

More than two million tonnes of sand and gravel could be excavated over a period of 10 years from the site at the village of Baston.

Objectors questioned the safety of the A15 that would carry lorries in and out of the proposed site at Thetford Farm.

Emma Pearman from the developer Cemex said the new quarry was urgently needed.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the firm's existing quarry in the area will stop production later in 2026.

Pearman told a Lincolnshire County Council planning meeting the site would "fill a large gap in the southern Lincolnshire market for sand and gravel".

"Without the quarries, HGVs will have longer journeys from out of the county, and there could be delays and increased costs for construction, which will affect residents and businesses," she said.

She added the noise and dust would be far below regulation levels, the council's highways team had not objected on traffic grounds and after work was finished it could be turned into lakes for leisure and nature conservation.

Independent councillor Ashley Baxter, who represents the area, said there had been about 400 objections to the plan describing it as an "unnecessary destruction of the English countryside."

"They all have HGV fears on this notorious road. People have died and been seriously injured at the junction," he said.

He told the meeting there were seven quarries which were operating or planned in the area, as well as hundreds more homes proposed for Baston.

The plans proposed a junction upgrade for the estimated 53 HGVs which would enter and leave every day.

Councillor Adrian Clarke, the chairman of Baston Parish Council, described the village's opposition to plans as a "David versus Goliath" fight.

"The A15 junction which HGVs will use is already hazardous, and this will just make it worse," he said.

The committee agreed to visit Baston and bring the plans back at a future meeting.

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