For nearly four years activists and green campaigners have been fighting to stop quarrying at Stanton Moor near Bakewell.
A number of eco-warriors have even dug in to the site at the Peak District beauty spot, close to the Nine Ladies stone circle, to try to prevent work
Operators Stancliffe Stone has planning permission to extract stone from Endcliffe and Lees Cross quarries.
However, that has been subject to a number of legal battles in the courts over whether the site is classed as dormant or active.
Last year the High Court ruled in favour of the Peak District National Park Authority, which listed the quarries as dormant.
But Stancliffe Stone is taking that decision to the Court of Appeal. Now the authority has agreed to an approach from the operators to apply jointly for an adjournment of the legal appeal, giving both sides time to thrash out a suitable deal over the land.
Last night a spokesman for the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) greeted the news with some apprehension.
South Yorkshire and Peak District spokesman Andy Tickle said they would be "exploring fully" any new development, although he does welcome the move in principle.
Under the proposal, he believes the operators would be looking to stop quarrying at Stanton Moor, but expand operations elsewhere.
He said: "It is the case that any expansion would cause less environmental damage than working Endcliffe and Lees Cross, which we were always opposed to.
"However, it is still a sensitive area and our concerns would include any environmental impact, for instance the impact of lorries."
He is also concerned that any expansion plan should be done on the same terms as before, and not be a way for the company to expand its operations further.
He said: "We will be monitoring closely any expansion plans. There needs to be transparency in terms of what is being swapped. We don't want to see them getting a massive gain by swapping to another site."
The adjournment, if granted by the Court of Appeal, will give time for Stancliffe Stone to explore other options consistent with the Stanton Moor Principles, agreed by interested parties from all sides five years ago.
It could lead to a full planning application, to be accompanied by an environmental statement, to be made for another site further away from the historically-important moor.
If that application was approved then Stancliffe Stone has agreed it would voluntarily relinquish its proposal to revive the existing permission at Endcliffe and Lees Cross, which dates from 1952 and remains valid until 2042.
Authority chairman Tony Hams said: "The request for an adjournment – while not compromising us in any way over any future planning application the company may submit – does offer one more option for a possible solution to a very complex matter.
"That option could lead to a voluntary revocation of the existing planning permission for Lees Cross and Endcliffe.
"It will still be up to the authority, in consultation with the public, and after the normal statutory consultation process, to decide which option to take, and we will make what we believe at the time to be the best decision for the National Park."
The other alternatives will still be available to both parties – Stancliffe Stone's appeal could still go ahead and, depending on the outcome, the authority would decide how to go forward.
No work can take place at the Endcliffe and Lees Cross quarries until the issue is resolved.
There was no comment last night from Stancliffe Stone.