QUARRY owners have been given permission to extract the remaining 28.5m tonnes of rock from its site over the next two decades.

Breedon Northern Ltd had applied to extend its activities at Raisby Quarry, near Coxhoe until 2042.

The quarry, which has been working for more than a century, employs 18 people and also supports the jobs of 25 truck drivers and 33 people at the onsite laboratory and head office.

Members of Durham County Council’s county planning committee voted unanimously in favour of granting planning permission.

Councillor George Richardson said: “I’ve been to another quarry close to here and I couldn’t help but be impressed with how the operation was run and how considerate of their neighbours they were.”

No-one living near the quarry at Raisby Hill, where limestone has been extracted since the latter part of the 19th century, objected to the extension to its operation.

The proposal includes a two-year period following the end of quarrying to restore the land, including plans for a lake and new rights of way.