RESIDENTS have packed a public meeting to voice their anger at a proposed quarry.

Almost 90 people attended the meeting in Kirkby Fleetham to hear plans by Tarmac to extract sand and gravel from farmland to the north and north-west of the village.

The quarry, known as the Killerby Prospect, would be half a mile from the village at its closest point.

Tarmac plans to move to the area when materials run out at Scorton quarry in ten years. A processing plant would be built on the land.

Traffic from the site would travel directly to the A1.

Michael Young, of Tarmac, outlined the proposals.

He said that once quarrying on the site was complete, it would be transformed into lakes and grassland.

He said: "There will be no impact on this village from operations, there will only be a positive gain."

That was disputed by a number of residents.

Karen Stephenson, of Kirkby Hall, said: "The effect that this will have on the whole of Kirkby Fleetham is immense. It will blight the area and people will not want to move here.

"It will affect the value of every single property."

Mr Young said: "I do not accept that it does cause a blight and my experience is that it simply is not true that it would cause a loss of value."

Mike Alexander, the chairman of Kirkby Fleetham Parish Council, said a working group would be set up to oppose the plans.