PORTISHEAD'S civic amenity site could be closed until August - because of fears about the stability of the quarry rockface. North Somerset Council was forced to cordon off parts of the civic amenity site at Black Rock Quarry last week following an annual

PORTISHEAD'S civic amenity site could be closed until August - because of fears about the stability of the quarry rockface.North Somerset Council was forced to cordon off parts of the civic amenity site at Black Rock Quarry last week following an annual inspection of the rockface. The partial closure of the tip resulted in traffic mayhem along Valley Road as people waited to dump their rubbish.Police raised concerns about the congestion and said the facility should be closed until the tip was fully open again.But work on stabilising the rockface cannot take place until August because of peregrine falcons nesting on it.North Somerset Council spokesman Nick Yates said: "It is likely the civic amenity site could remain closed until August."Over the last few weeks, work has been undertaken to remove loose rocks from the north face of the old quarry wall."As part of this work, the contractor identified a section in the middle of the face above the road section as being fractured."Due to the number of motorists queuing to use the site over the Easter weekend, the police advice has been that, to ensure the safety of road users, the facility should be closed until it can offer a full service once again and vehicles can drive into the quarry."North Somerset Council has appointed a geotechnical engineer and a blueprint is currently being drawn up for the anchoring, cabling and meshing of the rockface.The work, when it can begin, will take approximately three weeks to complete.Residents in the Portishead area are now being urged to hold onto their green waste and use the kerbside green waste and recycling collection services.Alternatively, they are being asked to use the household recycling centres in Aisecombe Way, Weston-super-Mare, or Cheston Combe Civic Amenity site in Backwell.Mr Yates said: "The council has tried to ensure that residents can still recycle their waste."But we apologise for any inconvenience this essential safety work may cause.