UNIQUELY DANGEROUS COAL MINE
This deep coal mine is unlike any other coal mine. It is just five miles from the world’s riskiest nuclear waste site. We urge the Planning Inspector to put earthquake risk and expected subsidence clearly front and centre. It is no accident that it was nuclear safety campaigners, Radiation Free Lakeland who first alerted the nonchalant world in 2017 to the dangers posed by this coal mine.
CUMBRIAN MUD PATCH ON THE IRISH SEA BED
In addition to induced earthquake risks the mine would be directly below Sellafield’s decades of nuclear waste which have been discharged down pipelines into the Irish Sea and are now largely (but not completely) held in the Cumbrian Mud Patch. Adding vicious insult to injury the CEO of the coal mine, Mark Kirkbride, has been appointed to “Deliver” a deep nuclear dump for the UK government and has already provided preliminary costings of £1.7 Billion just to dig the hole.
1000 METRES DEEP
Exploratory boreholes (allowed by County Council under “Permitted Development”) for the coal mine extend to 1000 metres, well below the known coal deposits, through geological faults. The ‘exploratory boreholes’ have already accidentally hit a methane gas pocket in the Irish Sea near Sellafield.
MAN MADE EARTHQUAKES
It is accepted that coal mining is far worse than fracking for causing earthquakes and man-made earthquakes in former coal mining regions including Cumbria have substantially declined since the stopping of deep coal mining.
SECRETIVE NEW LICENCE APPLICATIONS
The developers West Cumbria Mining have applied for new licence applications. The public and we presume the Planning Inspector are being denied sight of the new plans. We wonder how the planning inquiry can be at all valid without sight of these new licence applications?
PLANNING INQUIRY INTO A DECISION THAT THE COUNCIL WILL NOT DEFEND - IS THIS A FIRST?
We are also confused about the rationale for the Inquiry given that the Planning Inspector is looking into a decision by Cumbria County Council, a decision that has since been effectively withdrawn i.e. the Council are not defending their approval of the coal mine and have effectively withdrawn approval.
PUT EARTHQUAKE AND SUBSIDENCE FRONT AND CENTRE.
Please ensure that earthquake risk is put front and centre of this planning inquiry. Coal mining is far worse than fracking for induced seismicity and Sellafield is just five miles away. To not put earthquake and subsidence front and centre would be to allow the Secretary of State to turn a blind eye to arguably the most damning and dangerous aspects of this coal mine.
WHO WILL TAKE RESPONSIBILITY?
The environmental impacts of disturbing the radioactive settlement in the Cumbrian Mud Patch by the "expected subsidence" (West Cumbria Mining) cannot be understated. Who would take the responsibility of cleaning-up the Irish Sea the beaches and 10 miles inland in the worst case scenario which would see the resuspension of several decades of radioactive wastes.
Who would take responsibility for induced seismicity resulting from this new coal mine?
West Cumbria Mining? The County Council? Sellafield?
Induced seismicity could include:
*liquefaction of the Sellafield site
*widening of undetected cracks in the Magnox Swarf Silos on the Sellafield site "Current leak rates are circa 1.5 – 2.5 m3/d. It is desirable to reduce these as much as possible. At present, it is not possible to determine with certainty the precise location of the leak, or indeed the silo or silos (of the 6) that is leaking."
* loss of coolant for high level wastes could impact the whole of Europe.
*localised flooding exacerbating corrosion of existing and planned nuclear storage sites at Drigg and the Port of Workington.
Anthropomorphic Earthquakes in the UK
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283186824_Anthropogenic_earthquakes_in_the_UK_A_national_baseline_prior_to_shale_exploitation
Sellafield's Magnox Swarf Silos' Leaking
https://www.gamechangers.technology/challenge/Leak_prevention_or_minimisation
Sellafield Radioactive Discharge on the Irish Sea Bed directly beneath the coal mine plan and question of 'Who is Responsible for Safety of the Discharged Nuclear Wastes?' is subject to complaint being dealt with by the Information Commissioner
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/responsibility_for_discharged_ra
Coal Authority Licences
https://keepcumbriancoalinthehole.wordpress.com/2021/01/18/do-not-rubber-stamp-new-coal-authority-licenses-for-cumbria/
6th Climate Budget
https://www.theccc.org.uk/publication/sixth-carbon-budget/ note the Climate Change Committee is appointed by BEIS who have also appointed the Coal Boss, Mark Kirkbride to advise Government (CoRWM) on the 'Delivery of a Geological Disposal Facility" (or more than one).
British Geological Society Lack of Testing in West Cumbria
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/west_cumbria_mining_abstraction#incoming-1625582
Who is Responsible for Radioactive Waste on the Irish Sea Bed – Call from Nuclear Free Local Authorities
https://www.nuclearpolicy.info/news/nfla-troubled-uk-communities-minister-not-calling-in-decision-deep-underground-coal-mine-west-cumbria/
https://issuu.com/wildart/docs/west_cumbria_mining_-_radiological_implications_of
