This picture, taken in March 2021, exhibits the location the place the brand new facility can be developed.
Christopher Furlong | Getty Images News | Getty Images
LONDON — Plans for a deep coal mine within the northwest of England got the inexperienced gentle by the U.Ok. authorities, a call that is been welcomed by its backers however slammed by critics.
In an announcement reacting to the news, the agency behind the event stated it was “delighted with the decision.”
West Cumbria Mining stated the Woodhouse Colliery, within the county of Cumbria, would provide “the critical steel industry with a high-quality metallurgical coal product.” According to the business, the undertaking will present roughly 500 direct jobs.
The U.Ok. has an extended affiliation with coal mining, however the trade’s decline hit many communities onerous and is an emotive topic. The causes for the federal government’s selections have been outlined in an intensive doc revealed on-line on Wednesday.
Among different issues, it stated Michael Gove, the secretary of state for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities, was “satisfied that there is currently a UK and European market for the coal … and that although there is no consensus on what future demand in the UK and Europe may be, it is highly likely that a global demand would remain.”
The approval for the Woodhouse Colliery was welcomed by Mike Starkie, the elected mayor of Copeland Borough Council in Cumbria. Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s “The World Tonight” on Wednesday, Starkie, who’s a member of the ruling Conservative Party, described himself as “absolutely thrilled.”
“I’ve been inundated with messages from across my community tonight, and we’ve got a community in celebration about one of the biggest positive economic impacts on our area in a generation,” he added. “This is fantastic news for West Cumbria and for our community.”
Starkie’s enthusiasm was not shared by all. “Phasing out coal use is the clearest requirement of the global effort towards Net Zero,” Lord Deben, chairman of the Climate Change Committee, an unbiased physique which advises the U.Ok. authorities, stated.
“We condemn, due to this fact, the Secretary of State’s choice to consent a brand new deep coal mine in Cumbria, opposite to our earlier recommendation,” Deben added.
He went on to state that the United Kingdom’s “hard-fought global influence on climate” had been “diminished by today’s decision.”
Alongside the CCC, different organizations have been additionally important of the event shifting ahead. “This is an appalling decision,” Tony Bosworth, a campaigner at Friends of the Earth, stated.
“Approving this mine is a misguided and deeply damaging mistake that flies in the face of all the evidence,” he added. “The mine isn’t needed, will add to global climate emissions, and won’t replace Russian coal.”
Greenpeace UK’s Policy Director, Doug Parr, stated the mine would “do absolutely nothing for the UK’s energy security since the coal it contains can only be used for steelmaking, not generating power, and more than 80% of it is earmarked for sale in Europe anyway.”
“There’s a technological revolution building in steel-making, but this approach could make the UK a backwater in the 21st-century clean tech race,” Parr stated.
Elsewhere, Jen Carson, who’s head of trade on the Climate Group, described the proposal to open the brand new coal mine as being “at odds with the steel sector, and the UK Government’s net zero pledge.”
While it was essential to the planet’s industrialization and stays a vastly essential supply of electrical energy, coal has a considerable impact on the atmosphere.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration lists a spread of emissions from coal combustion. These embody carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, particulates and nitrogen oxides.
Elsewhere, Greenpeace has described coal as “the dirtiest, most polluting way of producing energy.”
On the worldwide stage, the U.Ok.’s plans to develop a brand new web site linked to the mining of fossil fuels are at odds with excessive profile worldwide voices corresponding to Antonio Guterres, the U.N. secretary normal.
“The only true path to energy security, stable power prices, prosperity and a livable planet lies in abandoning polluting fossil fuels — especially coal — and accelerating the renewables-based energy transition,” he stated earlier this 12 months.
In an announcement despatched to CNBC on Thursday, a spokesperson for the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities stated the secretary of state had “agreed to grant planning permission for a new metallurgical coal mine in Cumbria as recommended by the independent planning inspector.”
“This coal will be used for the production of steel and would otherwise need to be imported,” they added.
“It will not be used for power generation. The mine seeks to be net zero in its operations and is expected to contribute to local employment and the wider economy.”
“The reasons for the Secretary of State’s decision are set out in full in his published letter, alongside the report of the independent planning inspector who oversaw the inquiry into the proposal.”
CNBC additionally contacted West Cumbria Mining for remark, however had not obtained a response forward of this story’s publication.