Further blow to controversial plans for new coal mine, after Coal Authority refuses to grant underground licences
Environmental campaigners are again celebrating, after the controversial proposals for a new coal mine in Cumbria received what could be a "knock-out blow" from the Coal Authority.
The government-backed agency yesterday confirmed it had refused to grant conditional underground coal mining licences to developer West Cumbria Mining Ltd for the proposed project.
The decision follows hot on the heels of a High Court ruling earlier this month that the planning permission for the project granted by the previous government was unlawful, as it failed to adequately consider the climate impact from the coal mined at the site.
The current government did not contest the case and will not appeal against the ruling. West Cumbria Mining, the company behind the development, has yet to say whether it intends to appeal against the decision.
However, Tony Bosworth, energy campaigner at Friends of the Earth, which led the legal action against the mine alongside campaign group South Lakes Action on Climate Change (SLACC), said the Coal Authority's refusal to grant a license for the project "is surely the knock-out blow for this totally unnecessary coal mine".
"Rather than staggering on, it's time for West Cumbria Mining to throw in the towel," he said. "The government must now work with local councils, businesses and the community to put West Cumbria at the heart of the green transition and give the region the investment, opportunities and jobs it desperately needs."
Maggie Mason at SLACC said the group was "very pleased to see that the Coal Authority licences for West Cumbria Mining at Whitehaven have not been approved".
"Now is the time for local and central government to work together for sustainable jobs and a clean healthy environment in the area," she added.
West Cumbria Mining was contacted for comment.
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