Planning permission is being sought to reopen operations at a sand and gravel quarry outside of Tuam.
McTigue Quarries Ltd is seeking the council’s approval to dig deeper on a 6.5ha section of the existing quarry at Cloonascragh, approximately 2.6km south of Tuam.
The sand and gravel quarry is currently dormant, having ceased operations in 2014 when the previous operator went into liquidation.
The current owners intend to extract the last of the sand and gravel extracted from the pit down to a maximum depth of 34m, with an expected total of 165,000m³.
The extraction work will be done by excavators and dump trucks, with no blasting required, before being processed at the screening and washing plant at the north-west of the pit.
Along with extracting raw materials, McTique also intends to import construction and demolition waste, approximately 50,000 tonnes per annum.
This will be crushed, screened, and recycled on site as part of the eventual restoration process of the quarry.
An Ecological Impact Assessment, Natura Impact Statement, and Environmental Impact Assessment Report have been submitted with this application.
Galway County Council is due to make a decision on this planning application by October 6 of this year.
