From idyllic countryside to a hazardous waste dump, residents of a north Canterbury town are fighting to hold on to their slice of paradise.
A nearby quarry has lodged several applications to expand and create a landfill in the area, which could be a resting place for harmful substances.
Nestled beneath the Southern Alps, the north Canterbury town of Oxford has a population of just over 2000.
"It's very nice, it’s quiet, it’s relatively calm," Oxford resident Lindsay Edwards said.
It's the main drawcard for most residents here but there are growing concerns that country comfort could change.
Nearby Woodstock Quarries Limited has lodged several applications to expand an existing quarry at Viewhill and construct a landfill on-site.
"I feel anxious that this could upset the whole makeup of Oxford and the area," Edwards said.
The proposed landfill would have a footprint of around 12 hectares, with a volume of about 4 million cubic metres.
It would take hazardous demolition and construction waste, sparking concerns about pollution.
"Asbestos, contaminated soil, other contaminated waste… This type of development could really tarnish the area," Edwards said.
"The proposal talks about an increase of 20 to 40 truck movements per day and I know a lot of the people who live on the rural roads that aren't really set up for these larger trucks," Oxford-Ohoka Community Board chair Thomas Robson said.
Residents say they felt rushed to make submissions.
Environment Canterbury says it's aware of the community's concerns and agreed to push the deadline out to next week due to the scale and complexity of the applications.
"We have such an amazing backcountry environment. It would be such a blight on the landscape to have it there. At the end of the day that's why Kate Valley was built so we don't need small private landfills all over the place," Robson said.
Kate Valley took a large volume of waste from the post-quake demolitions.
In a statement, Woodstock Quarries Limited said all information and reports are publicly available online so people can make their own informed decisions.
There will be a formal hearing early next year before a decision is made.
