HEATED exchanges were heard at a campaign meeting held last night to stop quarrying on Portland.

Quarry managers were told they would leave the south end of the island looking like 'a lunar landscape' if their extraction plans went ahead.

There were jeers from residents as Stone Firms Ltd bosses answered questions about their plans to extract stone from the coastal strip at Southwell close to Portland Bill.

Around 100 island residents attended the meeting at Easton Methodist Church Hall.

Stone Firms Ltd estates manager Tim Clockworthy said the work could start as early as this summer.

He added: "The coastal strip is a strong area of reserve to us. It's nearly 50 per cent of our remaining reserve."

Mr Clockworthy said stone supplies at Coombefield Quarry were running low and work at Southwell could only be halted if Dorset County Council modified its planning permission.

Permission was originally granted to extract 140,000 cubic metres of stone in 1951.

One resident was warned twice for speaking out of turn by meeting chairman Councillor Richard Paisley.

Michael Marshall accused quarry bosses of 'talking drivel'.

He said: "You are trying to pull the wool over people's eyes. We want some of Portland left.

"If you carry on like this for 50 years there won't be anything left."

Managing director of Stone Firms, Jeff Smith, told residents he had a vested interest in the island as a Portlander himself.

He said: "We're not just here for the money, we're here for the future.

"We've spent £75,000 on Destination Portland and we've got 350,000 people driving out to Portland Bill.

"We want to keep business on the island. Portland needs something more than our industry."

Residents were told that 50-metre buffer zones would be created where quarrying was carried out close to houses.

They also heard that on average one lorry a day would pass through to reach the new site.

Portlanders vowed to do everything possible to stop Stone Firms Ltd from triggering its planning permission.

Councillor Richard Denton-White's resolution to stop the quarrying was unanimously backed.

He said: "Portland Bill and the land between Southwell and Portland Bill is iconic.

"People don't come here to look at a lunar landscape. We must fight this together because if we're not united then we're going to lose this."

He added that a further campaign meeting will be called soon.