A petition has been made to get Cumbria County Council to reject a planning application.

The application for planning permission No. 1/20/9004 is a retrospective planning application to Cumbria County Council seeking permission to expand the use of Esk Quarry, Sandpit Number 2, Faugh, into the business of 'Waste Aggregate recycling'.

The current planning permission governing the quarry (1/16/9001) allows for the extraction and export of up to 30,000 tonnes of sand and gravel per year and the import of a finite quantity of 'infill material' for the purpose of shoring up the banks of the quarry.

Planning permission 1/16/9001 expires in 2022 and it specifies that, after this date, the quarry must be returned to agricultural use.

According to the person who made the petition, who chooses to remain anonymous, aside from mentioning they are a Faugh resident, said: "If this new planning application were accepted, it would result in an increase in loaded wagons travelling to the quarry carrying 'waste aggregate' for recycling purposes and an increase in noise and vibration emitted from the quarry for the foreseeable future.

"Residents living in Faugh, Heads Nook, How Mill and Allengrove are already disturbed repeatedly throughout the day by vibration, noise and dust emitting from the quarry and from the lorries passing through their village and past their houses - the access roads to the quarry running through these villages and the villages of Hayton, Broadwath and Burnrigg, where lorries are also reported to pass through, are small and narrow and unsuitable for such large, heavy vehicles - posing a safety threat to local residents, children, walkers and cyclists.

"A further concern of local residents is the long-term environmental impact of this new business proposal and the potential for 'waste aggregate recycling' to be 'an open door' for the quarry being used as a landfill for unusable, possibly toxic waste that could leach into the underlying water table or the local water courses.

"The large number of objections already submitted against this planning application on the planning portal website reflects how strongly local residents feel about this problem and the implications for it continuing indefinitely.

"We call on Hayton Parish Council and Wetheral Parish Council to represent the views and concerns of local residents and object to this planning application and we call on the Cumbria County Council Planning Committee to reject it based on the large number of objections submitted."

For more information, and to sign the petition, visit https://chng.it/YDrs5Y5nRJ.