Went Edge Quarry lies just to the south of Darrington, near Pontefract.
Its managers want to expand the site, where limestone is mined, by nearly 10 hectares.
But furious objectors say the proposals would lead to serious damage to animals and plant life at the nearby Brockadale Nature Reserve, which is a popular haven for people living in Pontefract and the surrounding areas.
Went Edge Quarry s owners claim any impact the development has would be negligible .
It is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSI), such is its significance.
The Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, which runs the reserve, claimed the plans have the potential to damage a nationally important site through dust and disturbance coming from the quarry effectively running nextdoor.
Julian Sturdy: York council has track record of instability hampering progress yorkpress.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from yorkpress.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The former coal mine at Stillingfleet, which closed in 2004 A PLAN to create an industrial waste recycling centre on the site of a former coal mine that should have been returned to farm fields has been overwhelmingly rejected. North Yorkshire County councillors dismissed the scheme by UK Coal’s successor firm Harworth Estates at Stillingfleet, near York, after hearing a welter of objections over health, impact on residents and road safety grounds alongside a raft of accusations against the authority’s planning department. After the vote, Stillingfleet councillor Richard Musgrave said he was thrilled with the decision as it had lifted a cloud of uncertainty that had hung for many years over residents of several villages.
Highways framework offers opportunities to arboricultural contractors in North Yorkshire hortweek.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from hortweek.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.