If the Secretary of State fails to stop the West Cumbria coal mine, we, the undersigned, will.
We, the undersigned, say that the fight to stop the West Cumbria coal mine is not over if the Secretary of State grants West Cumbria Mining Ltd. permission to wreak climate chaos.
We commit to taking the action necessary to prevent the damage that West Cumbria Mining Ltd.’s proposed coking coal mine would cause to the local environment, UK climate leadership, and global climate change if the Secretary of State fails to stop it after the public inquiry.
Limits of the public inquiry
The Planning Inquiry that’ll guide the Secretary of State’s decision will be limited by a National Planning Policy Framework that’s no longer fit for purpose in its failure to centre contributions to climate change in planning considerations. A recent precedent also means the Planning Inquiry may not even consider the ‘downstream’ impacts of the coal mine—namely how the coal will be used. Starting a new coal mine means more coal is used and generating greater emissions, but these emissions may be discounted. This would limit the public inquiry to consideration of the impacts from the mining only. We will not be bound by the limitations imposed on the public inquiry.
This mine must be prevented
We are living on the brink of climate catastrophe as well as many collapsing local ecosystems around the UK. Allowing this new coal mine now would cost the UK in terms of its environment, publicly funded infrastructure, and climate leadership, with any tax income in question. Resources must instead be invested in generating green jobs within West Cumbria, proving that it is not a choice of jobs in climate-trashing industries or unemployment—as that’s not a choice to most people.
Our commitment
We resolve to take the direct action that’s necessary to stop the proposed West Cumbria coal mine if the public inquiry and Secretary of State fail the British public and our future generations by permitting this climate wrecking proposal to go ahead. This direct action will involve a diversity of online and offline tactics that have a proud history of playing a vital role in protecting people, animals, and the environment where other methods have been ineffective and exhausted. In the UK, this includes the civil rights movement, women’s vote, disabled rights, genetically modified farming, and the phase-out of using coal to generate electricity.
Signed so far:
Bristol Rising Tide
Coal Action Network
Columban Missionaries Britain
Earth First! Gathering UK
Earth First! North East
Green Anti-capitalist Front
Insurance Rebellion
Reclaim the Power
Rising Tide UK
West Cumbria Friends of the Earth
XR North East and Cumbria
Copies of the statement have been posted to West Cumbria Mining Ltd, and EMR Capital - who are their financial lifeline (explained in this parody investment brochure).
Coal Action Network is one of 11 action groups committing to take direct action against the proposed Cumbrian coking coal mine, should the government reject all of the evidence at the public inquiry and approve the mine. Download a PDF of the joint statement or this press release.
Direct action groups are signing onto a public statement (below), committing to take action to stop the controversial coal mine proposal, if, after the public inquiry, Gove approves it despite direct warnings from its own Climate Change Committee. Copies of this statement, along with a parody booklet about West Cumbria Mining Ltd’s links with investors in the Cayman Islands tax haven, and a flyer for public rallies planned on the first day of the public inquiry were posted to offices of connected companies around the world this week.
EMR Capital was recently reported to be wavering in their financial support to West Cumbria Mining Ltd due to the costs in legal and expert fees of trying to win the upcoming public inquiry. The most recent annual accounts show that this finance is essential for West Cumbria Mining Ltd to operate.
Direct action can cause severe delays to large-scale projects and cost companies huge amounts—HS2 Ltd recently estimated protestors had cost the company £75million so far. The possibility of further delays and yet further costs may concern other investors or insurance providers that would have otherwise shown interest if the coal mine eventually got the go ahead from Micheal Gove.
Direct action has been a prominent element of many struggles for social improvement and reform throughout history, more recently including civil rights movement, women’s vote, disabled rights, genetically modified farming, and the phase-out of using coal to generate electricity. With the local campaign having exhausted other options, groups signing onto this statement are therefore committing to using direct action again to end all coal mining in the UK.
These groups believe, that irrespective of its stated use, industry cannot continue using coal and other fossil fuels—citing that impacts of climate change are already causing ecosystems to start failing in some countries where people are often more reliant on them for their survival.
ENDS
Updated 24 September to reflect the change of Secretary of State in the latest cabinet reshuffle means Micheal Gove will make the decision following the planning inspectorates recommendation.
The Welsh Government’s long-awaited Bill is expected to be presented to the Senedd before the end of 2024. The very recent Cwmtillery tip slip will make this Bill a more politically charged issue. It will also raise scrutiny over whether measures in the new Bill mark a sufficient improvement on the Mines and Quarries (Tips) Act 1969…
Kömür Eylem Ağı (Coal Action Network), 2024 yılında Türkiye kömür endüstrisini araştırdı. Bu makalede, bulgularımız ve Türkiye’deki kömür, hava kirliliği, Rusya savaşı ile karbonsuzlaştırma arasındaki ilişkiler inceleniyor.
Last December in London, the CAN team protested with other climate campaigners for two days in freezing temperatures outside one of the world’s biggest events funnelling investment into expanding mining globally. The ‘Mines and Money Conference’ held in London’s Business Design Centre connected investors with projects and companies responsible for human rights abuses, ecocide, and fuelling climate chaos…
The UK Government has laid a Written Ministerial Statement confirming that it will introduce legislation to “restrict the future licensing of new coal mines”, by amending the Coal Industry Act 1994, “when Parliamentary time allows”. The UK Government’s press release is entitled “New coal mining licences will be banned”. Here at Coal Action Network, we thinks it’s great that the UK Government is following…
(Türkçe olarak mevcuttur) Coal Action Network investigated the Turkish coal industry in 2024. This article looks at our findings and the links between Turkish coal, air pollution, Russia’s war and decarbonisation.
Former steelworker, Pat Carr, spoke to Anne Harris from Coal Action Network about the financial support offered to workers when the Consett steelworks closed in 1980, and they discussed what can be done better, in workplaces like Scunthorpe steelworks. (Article published in Canary magazine)
The proposed West Cumbria Coal mine lost its planning permission in September 2024. Since then its application to get a full coal mining license was refused by the Coal Authority, another nail in the coffin of the proposed coking coal mine.
Bryn Bach Coal Ltd is the coal mining company that operates the Glan Lash opencast coal mine, which has been dormant since planning permission expired in 2019. In 2018, it applied for an extension which was unanimously rejected by planning councillors in 2023. Undeterred, Bryn Bach Coal Ltd is trying again! This time with a slightly smaller extension of some 85,000 tonnes rather than 95,000 tonnes…
Former steelworker, Pat Carr, speaks to Anne Harris from Coal Action Network about the financial support offered to workers when the Consett steelworks closed in 1980.