AN application has been made to extend the life of a Thurrock quarry by another four years.

And it reveals that the already A13 road-widening project which Thurrock Council said was due to be completed before the end of 2021 is now set to now run well into 2022.

Residents in East Thurrock, particularly around the East Tilbury and Linford area have complained for many years about the blight of landfill quarries in the region and the amount of heavy goods vehicle traffic on local roads.

Now the owners of one of the quarries, Rainbow Shaw Quarry off Hoford Road near Linford, which should close next year want to keep it open until March 2025.

Part of the justification for doing so is the contract its owners and waste haulier CSL for managing the inert waste arising from the widening of the A13 which they say has resulted in a significant level of material being recovered as reusable aggregate, rather than being with material being suitable for infill - hence the quarry has not filled up as fast as expected.

And the application reveals the already delayed A13 widening project, which councillors were recently briefed would be finished by the end of 2021, will now roll on well into 2022.

The application for an extension to the life of Rainbow Quarry is also justified by the further shortage of infill material a result of the Covid-19 Pandemic on the construction industry in the region, leading to a marked decline in the levels of construction activity and less material going into the quarry.

You can read the full submission to Thurrock Council to extend the life of the quarry - and comment on the proposal here.

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The link includes access to the full planning statement put forward by CSL (Clearserve Ltd).

Meanwhile residents in the area continue to fear planning permission will be given for the extension of another quarry close by.

The expansion of Orsett Quarry would see huge swatches of rural land devoured for landfill and big increase in the number of lorries on local rural roads.