A company whose former director was jailed for waste crimes has won permission to reopen a Staffordshire quarry.

Planning committee members at Staffordshire County Council approved the application to reopen Bradwell West Quarry, in Newcastle, lodged by The Old Red Developments Ltd.

Under the proposals, up to 200,000 tonnes of Etruria Marl will be extracted from the site annually for around seven years, after which 'inert' materials such as construction waste will be used to restore the land. The company's former director, Joe Frizell, was jailed for two years in April for his part in an illegal waste operation at Bonnie Braes Farm, in Bignall End.

Frizell resigned from the company on April 2 – the day he was sentenced – after he was disqualified from being a director for six years. According to Companies House, Zoe Frizell is currently The Old Red Developments' sole director.

Local MPs, councillors and residents objected to the proposals, raising concerns over the link to waste crimes, and the potential for a recurrence of the problems with landfill gas odours at Walleys Quarry in Silverdale. But officers told the committee that neither the reputation of the applicants nor the problems at Walleys Quarry were material planning considerations – and that a refusal on those grounds would likely be overturned on appeal.

Committee members voted to approve the application, in line with their officers' recommendation, subject to a raft of conditions aimed at reducing the impact of the quarry.

The six hectare site lies next to Bradwell Wood and the A500 (Google Maps).

Bradwell West lies next to the A500, Bradwell Wood and Chatterley Quarry. Clay extraction has taken place on the six hectare site for most of the last 70 years, but previously ended in 2004.

A total of 950,000 tonnes of Etruria marl will be extracted, mostly for the brickmaking industry, and manufacturers wrote in support of the application, saying the clay was needed to support production. Officers said the application should be approved as it complied with the development plan and represented 'sustainable development'.

They also explained that the Environment Agency (EA) would regulate the site during the restoration phase, and that restricting waste to inert materials should prevent the problems seen at Walleys Quarry.

Local county councillor Graham Hutton, speaking on behalf of residents in Bradwell, Porthill and Wolstanton, said that while he acknowledged the link to previous waste crimes was 'not relevant' to a planning decision, it was still a concern for residents.

He said: "Newcastle and its residents suffered greatly at the hands of waste companies, and there have been public purse costs which should never have happened. So as I see it, there's a need to demonstrate trust by the company."

Cllr Hutton suggested that the company should agree to allow local councillors to carry out visual inspections during the restoration phase. He added: "I think that would give residents enormous comfort, knowing that it's not just down to the EA, who have got a certain reputation. It's about the company reaching out to the residents and saying: 'We're good guys, and we're happy to allow officers of the county and borough and elected members to come down and see what we're doing."

Objections were submitted by Adam Jogee and David Williams, the MPs for Newcastle and Stoke-on-Trent North respectively, along with three councillors, including Newcastle Borough Council leader Simon Tagg, who expressed similar concerns over enforcement by the EA. Seventeen residents also objected to the application.

But committee members agreed that there were no planning reasons to refuse permission, and they voted unanimously to approve the application.

Councillor David Smith said: "We have got very extensive conditions on how that quarry should be managed, on its observation by various officers. It's got to be good news that the quarry is to be reopened and will actually be restored back to a reasonable state.

"We have to be satisfied that the presentation given by the officers gives a true and fair representation of the application and the operation of this site. That is the issue before us, and that is the issue we should be considering now."

Councillor Jill Waring said that 'under no circumstances' must there be a repeat of the 'outrageous events at Walleys Quarry'.

The Old Red Developments Ltd will be required to sign a section 106 agreement which will include requirements for extended aftercare of five years at the site, and a restoration fund based on payments for each tonne of clay sold.

Planning conditions include a time limit on the quarrying of clay to 10 years, with a maximum of eight years for the restoration of the site; a maximum of 160 vehicle movements a day; and a restriction of waste types to 'inert, solid, non-biodegradable, non-putrescible materials'. The committee imposed an additional condition requiring the company to form a liaison committee.

Following the vote, committee chair Mark Winnington asked for officers to draft a letter to the Environment Agency requesting that local councillors be given the opportunity to visit the site.

The illegal waste operation at Bonnie Braes Farm saw at least 100,000 tonnes dumped between March 1, 2014 and June 30, 2015, which raised the level of the ground by up to seven metres. Joe Frizell and TW Frizell were among five people and three companies sentenced for their involvement in the operation at Shrewsbury Crown Court. TW Frizell was fined £1 as the company is in liquidation.

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