A group of residents opposed to the expansion of a gravel mine in Pitt Meadows has set up website in an effort to thwart its growth.

The website at stopquarryexpansion.ca urges residents to contact the provincial ministers responsible for mining and encourage Pitt Meadows-Maple Ridge MLA Michael Sather to take up their cause.

“Our position is the mine has grown enough,” said Brent Richards, who is leading the charge.

The Pitt River Quarries gravel mine in the Pitt Polder hopes to expand its operation further into the rock face of Sheridan Hill.

The expansion will allow Lafarge Canada Inc. to continue mining at the site for another 10 to 15 years and move the mine to within 15 metres from the east property boundary – 100 metres from the nearest houses on Sheridan Hill.

As a result, excavation will be seen from the southwest side of Sheridan Hill, from Harris, McNeil and Richardson roads and all of the properties in that area of northern Pitt Meadows.

Pitt Meadows council voted Tuesday to tell the province it does not support the quarry expansion.

The reasons for their disapproval include the proximity of the proposed expansion to neighbouring residences, a yet-to-be completed environmental assessment by the mine, inadequate buffering as well as the hours and timing for blasting.

Meanwhile, MLA Michael Sather is organizing a town hall meeting where he hopes to bring the two sides together.

The quarry has been operating without problems for years, so it would be a shame for that relationship to sour, Sather said.

“People need a chance to express their concerns. I want to bring people together so they can air their difference,” he said.

Sather is also trying to organize a tour of the quarry site to see how far the proposed expansion moves the quarry’s boundaries.

The quarry’s current operation covers 54.7 hectares. The proposed expansion would include an additional 15.8 hectares, bringing the total operation area to 70.5 hectares.

Lafarge Canada assures that a buffer of trees will be kept to block the view and that expansion will not encroach onto the Sheridan Hill subdivision.

• A town hall meeting organized by MLA Michael Sather will take place at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Lions Den, 1 - 12479 Harris Road in Pitt Meadows.

For more visit, stopquarryexpansion.ca.