The petition of Residents of Tonbridge and Malling,
Declares that land in Ryarsh, west of Roughetts Road is an unsuitable location for a quarry and Kent County Council should not allocate site M8 for sand extraction in their Minerals and Waste Local Plan.
The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges Kent County Council to reconsider the allocation of a site for quarrying in Ryarsh, West Malling.
And the petitioners remain, etc.—[Presented by Tom Tugendhat , Official Report, 21 November 2018; Vol. 649, c. 976 .]
[P002296]
Observations from The Minister for Housing (Kit Malthouse):
While I am unable to comment on emerging minerals plans and the merits or otherwise of specific sites proposed for inclusion in those plans, I can set out the Government’s policy on allocating sites for minerals development.
The national planning policy framework states that it is essential that there is a sufficient supply of minerals to provide the infrastructure, buildings, energy and goods that the country needs. Since minerals are a finite natural resource, and can only be worked where they are found, best use needs to be made of them to secure their long-term conservation.
Mineral planning authorities should plan for the steady and adequate supply of minerals by designating specific sites, preferred areas or areas of search. Sites may be designated where viable resources are known to exist, landowners are supportive of minerals development and the proposal is likely to be acceptable in planning terms. Designating specific sites in minerals plans provides the necessary certainty on when and where development may take place.