Coalmine gets the green light

I'm totally lost with this now.

MP for Workington on tv arguing that they have low unemployment, and "its not about the jobs. "We dont need the jobs". This is totally at odds with people and councillors of Whitehaven btw.

"We are importing coking coal for our steel industry and will do so until 2050's"

Yet 85% of the product will be for export. And the UK steel industry have advised that it is not suitable for them to use.

He wants this mine but insists the region doesn't need it.

Michael Gove probably signed it off when it was presented to him as a "coke"mine.

Atkinson might be glad of a job down the pit because in 2 yrs time he willed be out on his ear. A Tory MP from Workington - defies belief.
 
At the moment we use around 5 to 6 million tons of coal a year in this country nearly all of which is imported, would you not rather we mined our own creating jobs and wealth in our own country whilst at the same time REDUCING carbon emissions by not bringing imported coal from places such as Columbia, Australia, Kazakhstan etc, coal can be burned cleanly, in fact the wood pellet power staton at Drax emits more green house gas than equivalent coal fired power stations, on our local steam railway we have to buy coal from all over the world, surely better to mine our own. Coal use throughout the works not going away anytime soon !
 
locomansimon said:
At the moment we use around 5 to 6 million tons of coal a year in this country nearly all of which is imported, would you not rather we mined our own creating jobs and wealth in our own country whilst at the same time REDUCING carbon emissions by not bringing imported coal from places such as Columbia, Australia, Kazakhstan etc, coal can be burned cleanly, in fact the wood pellet power staton at Drax emits more green house gas than equivalent coal fired power stations, on our local steam railway we have to buy coal from all over the world, surely better to mine our own. Coal use throughout the works not going away anytime soon !
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Have a read up on the mine and what will happen to the majority of the coal then come back and try again... :rolleyes:
 
Anyone else notice how baldy (or, badly!) we have regressed as a nation: Insular bigotry, coal mines, I was listening to people on the radio who've had to go back to using their fires because they can't afford the heating. We really are going backwards since 2016. And at an alarming rate
 
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SmallTown said:
Anyone else notice how baldy we have regressed as a nation: Insular bigotry, coal mines, I was listening to people on the radio who've had to go back to using their fires because they can't afford the heating. We really are going backwards since 2016. And at an alarming rate
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Strikes all over the country. No longer in the EU. Risk of blackouts over winter. The irony being we were told it was Corbyn that would take us back to the 70s
 
MolteniArcore said:
Have a read up on the mine and what will happen to the majority of the coal then come back and try again... :rolleyes:
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The coal will be used for steel and concrete production in the UKand Europe, that has t be a milion times better than dragging it thousands of miles from Colombia or Australia. Also there is economics last year we were paying £125 a ton for coal for our steam locos on the NYMR, this year we were quoted £700per ton from one foreign supplier and we ended up paying £400, this puts jobs and business at risk, we are not yet ready to abandon coal worldwide so me may as well use our own rather than importing it massively increasing its carbon footprint!
 
WindyNook said:
www.theguardian.com

UK’s first new coalmine for 30 years gets go-ahead in Cumbria

Michael Gove greenlights £165m project that will produce estimated 400,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions a year
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com

The mine will also produce an estimated 400,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions a year, increasing the UK’s emissions by the equivalent of putting 200,000 cars on the road.

The vast majority of the coal produced will be for export, as most UK steel producers have rejected the use of the coal, which is high in sulphur and surplus to their needs.

How do they justify this? Whose pockets are being lined?
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I wonder how much greenhouse gases are produced bringing 6 million tons of imported coal to the Uk from Colombia, Australia, etc, ships don't run on fresh air (although they used to).
 
locomansimon said:
I wonder how much greenhouse gases are produced bringing 6 million tons of imported coal to the Uk from Colombia, Australia, etc, ships don't run on fresh air (although they used to).
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locomansimon said:
The coal will be used for steel and concrete production in the UKand Europe
Click to expand...

I'm pleased you posted that link as it defeats your green argument totally. A direct quote from the article that you must have read:

"The vast majority of the coal produced will be for export, as most UK steel producers have rejected the use of the coal, which is high in sulphur and surplus to their needs.

Where these exports will go is uncertain, as most European steelmakers are turning away from the use of coal and adopting green methods such as electric arc furnaces and renewable energy."

So where have you seen that it will be used totally in the UK and Europe? And if it doesn't go to Europe, as the article you linked stated it won't, where do you think it will go?
 
anth25 said:
Strikes all over the country. No longer in the EU. Risk of blackouts over winter. The irony being we were told it was Corbyn that would take us back to the 70s
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I was thinking this the other day, I wasn't a huge Corbyn fan by the end (though I've never voted Conservative) but this is surely the closest thing to the 70s we've ever experienced as a nation since, errrrr, the 70s.

I am (or was) a big user of trains but at the moment it feels like something out of a futuristic dystopia movie. You get on one, usually half an hour or so after its meant to come (unless its cancelled, as lots of them are) and you've no real idea if you're going to end up anywhere near the place you're headed or when you'll get there. Obviously you won't be able to sit down, though if you're lucky, you might get to stand in a spot that isn't pressed up against a toilet door.

Might help if we had a Prime Minister who'd ever actually been on one. It doesn't have to be Jeremy Corbyn! This country has got itself in such a mess and sadly the people can't see what they've helped to create. Or maybe they're slowly realising.

Oh, and trains are somewhere quite low down my list in terms of what is wrong too. Its just that all the other stuff is so obvious.
 
How much of the £165m is coming from the government?
Where is the coal going to be used? Not in UK Steelworks according to the article. In back up power stations in the UK?
If its going to be used abroad, no one in the EU will touch it, how far will it have to be transported? At whatCO² cost
Will an incoming Labour government shut it down it might still be in the planning stage in 2024?
If so how much of the £165m will be in someone's pocket?
 
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