Limestone from Whatley quarry is recognised as a nationally significant resource, but its mineral bank is running out.
To ensure consistent and secure supplies of limestone for use in construction, including nationally significant infrastructure projects as well as local schemes, we want to reopen Westdown quarry. Extraction at Westdown goes back to the 1940s, and although the quarry has been dormant since the 1980s, it has current permissions for extraction until 2042.
Our approach is to use Westdown’s location, close to key road routes, to supply local demand, freeing up the rail link at Whatley to allow more material for national markets to go by rail. These combined steps will cut our carbon footprint and reroute vehicles away from local villages.
The overarching principle is that the operations of both quarries, including mineral volumes and vehicle movements, will not exceed the current permitted levels for Whatley.
Plans to update the existing conditions for Westdown were initially submitted to Somerset County Council (now Somerset Council) in January 2021 with further refinements to the scheme submitted in June 2022. These proposals included bringing the planning conditions up to date with current industry standards, plus a transformational legacy project through the proposed progressive restoration of the quarry and the adjacent Asham quarry void.
However, this application is still undetermined. That’s why we have decided to revise our plans and submit proposals for a simpler scheme. This sees quarrying operations limited to within Westdown’s existing boundary, with the proposed use of Asham quarry void completely removed from the revised approach.
We hope that this amended scheme of working, while still reflecting industry best practice, can be consented sooner, allowing us to reopen Westdown in 2025.
Public Drop-in
We have held several public drop-in sessions to outline our proposals for Westdown, provide detail on our approach to mitigation, transport and restoration and to answer questions.
Information shared at these events can be accessed below:
Thursday 18 January 2024 – amended proposals for Westdown, including uncoupling of Asham quarry void
Further details on our proposals for Westdown, including Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) can be found on the documents and materials page of this website.
For more information see our updated FAQ section here
We believe our approach for Whatley and Westdown offers real benefits to the East Mendips. It will help to secure the vital construction materials we need, create an additional 40 full time high skilled jobs, plus many more in the regional supply chain and will contribute more than £2 billion to the national economy up to 2042.
