Protest over quarry plans

Feb 2 2008 by Peter Collins, South Wales Echo

CONSERVATIONISTS and residents will hold a demonstration to demand that plans to blast a quarry on part of ancient woodland in South Wales are thrown out.

Vale councillors will hold an extraordinary meeting of the planning committee on Monday night to discuss plans by Cemex Ltd, based at Wenvoe Quarry, near Cardiff, to quarry limestone on land at Wrinstone Farm, south of the quarry.

The plan also involves building a conveyor link and haul road across Cwm Slade to link the new quarry with Wenvoe Quarry.

The demonstration takes place outside the Civic Offices, in Barry, where the planning committee meeting is being held. The Woodland Trust says the scheme would lead to the destruction of nearly half an acre of irreplaceable ancient woodland.

Spokesman Graham Bradley said:

“We have already lost half the ancient woodland that existed in the Vale or Glamorgan in the 1930s and we simply cannot afford to lose any more.”

Vale of Glamorgan planners have recommend refusal of the application.

Yesterday, we reported how a Druid High Priestess had joined the protest, branding the controversial plans “a disgrace”.