A Blenheim construction company has been given the go-ahead to significantly increase the amount of rock taken from the Omaka Quarry, despite strong objections by residents.
The Marlborough District Council has given consent for Simcox Construction to extract up to 90,000 tonnes of rock a year from its quarry, a kilometre from the end of Barracks Rd, Omaka Valley. The consent allows the company to run 34 truck movements from the quarry daily.
Thirty-seven submissions were made by nearby residents of the quarry. One supported the expansion, two were neutral and the rest opposed the plan.
A spokeswoman for Omaka Valley Group, representing residents opposed to the Simcox application, said members were disappointed. They were seeking legal advice to "clarify a number of inconsistencies and anomalies in the decision".
The decision was potentially disappointing for those who used the Omaka Valley daily, including school buses, drivers and cyclists, she said.
The group did not want to comment further until members had spoken to their lawyers and met to discuss the decision, she said.
The consent came with several conditions, including restricted operating hours between 7am and 5pm on weekdays and 7am and 1pm on Saturdays during daylight-saving periods, and 7.30am to 5.30pm weekdays and 7.30am to 1.30pm during standard time.
The maximum number of truck movements a day was set at 34.
The company is also required to widen Brookby Rd, north of the Falveys Rd intersection and Dog Point Rd, to a minimum of seven metres.
The road-widening must meet the standards of Marlborough Roads and must be done before annual extraction reached 90,000 tonnes.
Parts of Barracks Rd also needed to be sealed before the company could take more than 5000 tonnes of rock.
Simcox Construction owner Ian Simcox said he was satisfied with the consent approval and it had been a long process.
He did not want to comment further because he had not read the consent conditions in full and the date for appeals had yet to close.
In 2006, the company was granted consent to extract 3000 tonnes of rock a year.
That tonnage increased after four years of operation to 5000 tonnes a year until the consent expires in 2026.
All interested parties have 15 working days from when they received the decision to lodge an appeal.
Quarry worry: Simcox Construction has been given consent to increase the amount of rock extracted from the Omaka Quarry and residents are unhappy about it.
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