Concerns have been raised about plans to resume excavation work at a quarry that has been abandoned for more than 30 years.

In recent times, the top soil on the former Hadleigh Quarry at Peyton Hall Farm, has been used for agriculture.

But Tarmac Limited has just sold the site, and the new owners have notified Suffolk County Council that they intend to start quarrying again. If the plan goes ahead, aggregate will be excavated and sold, and the quarry will be in-filled with inert waste from road building or similar works.

But people living on the site boundary have objected to the proposal on health grounds. They also fear the narrow roads leading to the quarry are unsuitable for constant use by heavy vehicles.

Nikyolas Pechy, who lives with his wife Josephine Read in nearby Ivy Tree Lane, has written to the council with his concerns. The county authority is responsible for governing mineral extraction in Suffolk.

Mr Pechy said: “We object to any work at the quarry involving the extraction of gravel because this produces abrasive particles, almost certainly containing silicates, which the prevailing winds will blow towards our property.

“We are both retired and my wife already has asthma and a family history of cancer, so we have grave concerns about the risk of lung disease posed by the extraction.”

Previous applications to reopen the site have faced stiff opposition from villagers on traffic grounds and these concerns were also raised by Hadleigh Town Council last November when Tarmac’s mineral extraction permission was up for review. Mr Pechy added: “The original planning consent was granted in another era and is no longer relevant. The site is in a very rural location and the roads are quite narrow so in my view they will not stand up very well to continuous use by heavy lorries.”

A spokeswoman for Suffolk County Council said the authority was aware of the concerns being raised by people living on the quarry boundary, and was in the process of responding to letters.

She said: “We do not believe there will be a negative impact upon the health of local residents as the noise and air quality manager and the Environment Agency considered the planned scheme of work and had no objections.

“Any operator wishing to carry out work at the quarry site needs to comply with the planning permission conditions.

“The existing quarry boundary has remained unchanged and the scheme of work has the standard operational practices associated with such mineral operations.”