Hyndford Quarry hearing set for August 19 to 22

Thousands of locals have been outraged ever since plans were announced by Cemex to extend its quarry into the scenic “buffer zone” at the World Heritage Site to extract 10 million tonnes of sand and gravel.

The application was approved by South Lanarkshire Council in December last year, despite more than 12,000 objection letters being lodged in protest.

However, the Scottish Government “called-in” the application so that its impact could be examined in more detail.

Two Government Reporters have now been appointed to examine the application.

And they have decided to do so over a four day period from August 19 to August 22.

Meanwhile, the main groups in Lanark that opposed the application have united to form a new group called The New Lanark and Falls of Clyde Working Group.

It includes Save Our Landscapes (SOL), the New Lanark Trust and Lanark Community Council.

SOL chairman Mark Stephens said: “This issue has united Lanark and New Lanark.

“It is fitting that a range of local groups should come together to save this unique and much loved part of our heritage.”