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Longstone Edge battle ends in appeal refusal
The long-running legal battle over controversial quarrying at a Peak District beauty spot appears to be over, after law lords refused to hear a mining firm's appeal.
Bleaklow Industries lost its request to appeal an enforcement notice, which placed tight limits on its blasting at Backdale Quarry on Longstone Edge.
A three-person panel of law lords said there were no arguable points of law to be considered by the House of Lords, as the case has already been considered and appealed.
Peak District National Park Authority chairman Narendra Bajaria said: "We very much welcome this decision and hope and expect it will speed progress toward a permanent resolution of the problems on Longstone Edge.
"We now want to talk directly to the companies involved to find out their intentions. Our expectation is that any future working will be in line with the interpretation of the planning permission given by the Court of Appeal."
But Save Longstone Edge Group said immediate action was needed to ensure no limestone was exported from the site.
It said in a statement: "These hardly sound like the words of a man in a hurry. The legal situation is now crystal clear, and the Peak park has no excuse if they continue to allow MMC Midlands to export limestone illegally."
Chief executive Jim Dixon said on his blog that he understood there was a demand for fast action to prevent damage at Longstone Edge.
He said: "We will certainly be looking very carefully at how the company is working the site.
"We will be discussing the future and we will take decisions on what else must follow this important decision as speedily as we can."
Landowner MMC Midlands can still use its 1952 planning permission – primarily for the extraction of fluorspar within limestone – but only limited amounts of limestone can be taken off site.
No-one from Bleaklow Industries or MMC Midlands was available for comment.
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Weather for Bakewell
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 11 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North east
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Temperature: 11 C to 22 C
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