By ANEEKA SIMONIS
A GARFIELD family who rely on the tranquillity of their property for business income are deeply concerned about their future as the growing reality of a neighbouring “super quarry” hangs over their heads.
And the idea of selling is close to impossible, with valuation reports indicating the land has plummeted by about $250,000 in the past three years.
Maya and Peter Norlyng have operated a horse agistment enterprise from their lush 100-acre property on Sanders Road, Garfield North, for close to 15 years.
Maya said the majority of her riders, who like to make use of local roads for trail rides, choose her property as it is quiet and serene.
But she fears that will all change if the 134-hectare granite quarry proposed for the land next to her own goes ahead.
“It will have a big impact on our business,” Maya said.
“Our biggest selling point is that the area is so quiet. You don’t get passing traffic. It’s relaxing. If there is a quarry across the road, there will be rumbles, beeps and blasting.
“We have a lot of pleasure riders that want to be in a safe, quiet environment. We won’t be able to offer that same environment,” she said, adding concerns the added noise may spook horses that could potentially injure child or adult riders.
She said at least four of her riders had withdrawn from their business as a result of the proposed excavation site.
The mother of two admitted they tried to sell their property years ago out of fear the quarry would cripple their business, Bridlewood Farm.
It stayed on the market for 18-months, with little to no interest from buyers whose only offers were about $150,000 below their asking price.
Years on, and the idea of selling is even less of a prospect.
In September, valuation experts dropped the estimated value of their home and land by $250,000 since it was valued in April 2012.
“We intended to renovate but we no longer have the capital in the property to do that. We can’t sell, we can’t renovate. It’s like being in a gilded cage,” Maya said.
“When you buy, you don’t think others will be able to control what will happen with your property but they do by default.”
Hanson, the company behind the proposed development, submitted an application for an Environmental Effects Statement (EES) referral to the Department of Transport, Planning and Local Infrastructure in recent weeks.
The submission outlined intentions to extract of 2000 tonnes of stone per day from the site, initially, resulting in 80 truck movements.
However, the proposed seven-day-a-week quarry operation could extract up to 6900 tonnes of hard-rock granite from the site each day during peak times with projections the haulage would result in more than 400 incoming and outgoing truck trips daily, according to Hanson’s proposal.
Hanson’s project manager for the quarry application Daniel Fyfe earlier told the Gazette they intended to take on community concerns as they work through their proposal.
“Conducting feasibility studies, meeting all the legislative requirements and ongoing community consultation are all fundamental to a sustainable project but they take time,” he said.
“Through this, Hanson will continue to work with the community in order to provide resources for future development, local employment opportunities and ongoing business relationships.”
The quarry plans to begin production in 2018 if planning permits are approved.
