Take action against the Cumbria coal mine

Dear John

Plans for a new coal mine in Cumbria took a dramatic twist yesterday when Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick decided to "call in" the controversial plan.

This U-turn means that the final decision about the climate-wrecking mine will rest with him and the government instead of the county council, after a public inquiry.

Public pressure, passionate local campaigning in Cumbria [1] and the threat of a legal challenge from our friends at South Lakes Action on Climate Change (SLACC) have forced him to take this step. Do you have 2 minutes to make sure he now does the right thing and rejects the coal mine?

I'LL SIGN THE PETITION

The independent Climate Change Committee [2] warned the government in January that the mine will increase global greenhouse gas emissions.

It’s this fresh warning and growing public pressure that appears to have triggered Robert Jenrick’s change of mind after he initially decided to leave the decision up to Cumbria County Council.

And we think that gives us a fantastic chance of winning this argument and stopping the coal mine – just like we did when the government blocked a new opencast coal mine on the other side of the country in Druridge Bay. So, please sign our petition today.

I'LL SIGN THE PETITION

There’s been a lot of press attention around the fact that the proposed mine would produce coking coal, primarily for making steel – rather than generating energy for our homes. But this is a red herring. We need steel, but the steel industry across Europe is moving away from coal and towards lower emission technology.

And while we agree that Cumbria needs new jobs, these should be green jobs rather than ones in the fossil fuel industry.

With people across the globe – including those who’ve experienced extreme flooding in Cumbria – already suffering the impacts of climate chaos, now is not the time to be digging up more coal. Especially when the government is trying to show global leadership ahead of the UN climate talks in Glasgow.

I'LL SIGN THE PETITION

Best wishes and thanks for your support,

Tony Bosworth
Climate Campaigner

PS In case this petition looks familiar to you, we're calling for the same action as our friends at Greenpeace, so that we can have as much joint impact as possible.

NOTES:
[1] Grassroots groups like South Lakes Action on Climate Change, West Cumbria and North Lakes Friends of the Earth and Climate Emergency West Cumbria - and so many more - have campaigned tirelessly against this mine.
[2] The Climate Change Committee is the UK's independent adviser on tackling climate change.

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