Water or waste?

The Environment & Infrastructure Committee is set to finalise a report to the States in the next few weeks on whether the site should be used for water storage or for the disposal of inert waste.

There are strong views on each side of the debate. Former treasury lead Mark Helyar favours waste disposal, and has told the States that it would already be earning money if it had bought the quarry for inert waste.

But Peter Roffey, president of the States’ Trading Supervisory Board, which is responsible for Guernsey Water and the disposal of inert waste, believes that water storage is the stronger option.

Environment & Infrastructure president Lindsay de Sausmarez said that her committee would finalise a policy letter in the next few weeks.

‘We have been carrying out a thorough piece of work, leaving no stone unturned, and our aim is to submit it to the States in the first quarter of 2024,’ she said.

Les Vardes is currently owned by Ronez. The company has been extracting stone from it continuously since 1961 but is preparing to move quarrying to Chouet headland. Under planning policies, Les Vardes remains designated for water storage.

But Deputy Helyar argues that the States could already be earning £6 per tonne for inert waste to be dumped and have an income stream from that for the next 60 years.