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A SALTERFORTH quarry owner has refused to deny rumours that his land could be used as a travellers' site.

Andrew Shorten was speaking after a council meeting heard how he breached an enforcement order requiring him to clear materials from Park Close Quarry.

After several years of complaints from neighbours and a lengthy legal battle, the reclamation business was ordered to remove all materials from the site by last November.

It was claimed that noise, dust and an influx of HGVs had given residents a "hellish experience".

But on Tuesday councillors heard that although some progress was being made, the quarry, which traded as Steptoe's Yard, still contained large amounts of stone and building materials - in addition to a giant 30-foot golden man.

West Craven Committee members were also told that a clearance timetable, which was requested from Mr Shorten, had not been received.

Coun Allan Buck said that he had visited the site and "very little had moved", meaning it was unlikely it would be cleared by a revised May deadline.

He said: "Some material has been moved but it would be absolutely impossible to be done by the end of April at the current rate."

And Coun David Whipp claimed that rumours were circulating suggesting Mr Shorten was going to convert the quarry into a travellers' site.

Coun Whipp said all further work at the site should be banned to prevent any groundwork for such a move, such as the operation of a stone crushing machine.

He said: "We could be making further uses possible by allowing activities to continue."

When contacted by the Herald on Wednesday, Mr Shorten refused to confirm or deny whether there was any truth in the rumour.

He said he was looking at "all sorts of options" for the site but declined to comment further.

Mr Shorten said he was too busy moving materials over to his new premises in Altham to discuss the enforcement notice in detail.

Meanwhile, councillors resolved to request a timetable of action to get the site clear and take court action if Mr Shorten failed to comply.

8:00am Saturday 7th April 2007

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