Battle lines will once again be drawn this Friday by campaigners fighting the proposed expansion of Dean Quarry near St Keverne.

Community Against Dean Superquarry (CADS) will be returning to the High Court for a second time in their battle against quarry owners Shire Oak Quarries Ltd.

They want to see a new judicial review against Cornwall Council, pressuring them to uphold the decision of an earlier review back in 2015, at which a judge ordered that the redevelopment of the quarry should be halted due to a lack of an Environmental Impact Assessment.

This quashed an earlier planning decision of Cornwall Council, to allow the development of a perimeter fence, fuel and explosive storage, office, reception and amenity areas in order to allow full reopening of the quarry.

Since then Shire Oak has continued to put up a fence around the perimeter and CADS claim that the council has failed to take enforcement action.

Members of the action group are against a large scale expansion of the quarry, fearing the potential impact on the Manacles marine conservation zone, the environment - including air and noise pollution - on local food production, through dust settling on fields, and on local inshore fishing, as well as the impact on tourism and the existing local community.

Their campaign took on even greater urgency this week, following the findings of the government-commissioned Hendry Review.

In it, former UK energy minister Charles Hendry backed the creation of a proposed £1.3 billion tidal lagoon in Swansea Bay. He believed the 16 turbines along a breakwater - which are seen as a prototype for much larger lagoons - would make a "strong contribution" to the UK's energy supply and "contribute positively" towards the UK's decarbonisation goals.

The government still has to agree the deal and a marine licence will also have to be approved before work can begin however.

Shire Oak has previously made public its desire to reopen the site as a “super-quarry” in order to extract up to 1.5 million tonnes of rock each year for use in the creation of the tidal lagoon. In order to do so, blasting at Dean Quarry would likely take place around the clock, with the rock being loaded onto barges from a proposed 300-metre breakwater.

MP Derek Thomas has come out in support of CADS, saying a failure to properly consider its concerns would be “more than a slap in the face” for residents on the Lizard Peninsula.

He secured a debate in parliament last week, in which he urged government ministers to “look closely” at the proposal and make sure that Cornwall Council takes the concerns of residents seriously.

In his speech in the House of Commons Mr Thomas said: “It is predicted that tourism will be worth in excess of £1 billion over the next 20 years on the Lizard Peninsula – industrialising the east coast of the peninsular will decimate these figures.

“We should not, under any circumstances, trade what has become a destination hotspot for holidaymakers around the year for noise, air pollution, a scarred landscape and loss of marine diversity.

“I have not seen evidence that the new jobs created at Dean Quarry will adequately compensate for the negative impact on the local tourism industry.

“For years, as our core industries have declined, we have been encouraged to diversify and find new ways to make a living. The community of St Keverne parish has done this and it would be more than a slap in the face to compromise this good work now.”

He questioned what the government could do to make sure Cornwall Council “gives adequate consideration to the environment, the local economy and local residents.”

In response, the minister for housing and planning Gavin Barwell said he was prevented from commenting on the specific issues relating to Dean Quarry, because of his role in the planning system and due to the issues being subject to a judicial review.

He did acknowledge that the subject was “of great importance” and the House understood the concerns, but said it was the government’s view that “the local planning system is the best way to address them.”

“It is our view that, in the main, the government’s role should be constrained to setting national planning policy,” he added.

However, Mr Barwell went on to say that should Mr Thomas feel there were grounds for a particular application to be decided by the local authority, for example if it raised issues beyond local importance, he has the opportunity to make a case for the Secretary of State to call it in.