Surrey celebrates reduction in mining requirement (From Surrey Comet)

Surrey celebrates reduction in mining requirement

1:20pm Friday 18th December 2009 in

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Surrey County Council (SCC) has said it successfully fought its corner, after achieving a reduction of 50,000 tonnes per year in its allocation for mining sand and gravel.

A spokesman said it was the only county in the southeast to get a reduction, after most local authorities were told to mine more.

SCC has been fighting for the reduction in the volume of minerals the Government requires it to provide by 2026, arguing there are not enough locations in the county where minerals can be extracted without causing harm. It also claimed supplies would be nearly exhausted before 2026.

Councillor Lynne Hack, cabinet member for the environment at the council, said: “I am delighted that we have achieved a reduction in the amount of sand and gravel we are required to produce.

"Surrey has done its bit in the past as one of the chief producers in the south-east, but there are few sites remaining which can be quarried without causing unacceptable harm to residents and the environment.

“Our resources are already being steadily depleted and it would be detrimental to local builders and companies, and to the county as a whole, if supplies were completely exhausted within the next 18 years.”

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