Tim Farron MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale is “pleased to confirm that I have written to the Foreign Secretary and the Chief Executive of the Coal Authority to forward your letter for their consideration and response” regarding questions relating to the West Cumbria Coal Mine.
The letter sent to the Foreign Secretary and the Coal Authority on behalf of Keep Cumbrian Coal in the Hole – a Radiation Free Lakeland campaign asks that:
- The Foreign Office fully investigate West Cumbria Mining’s Russian connections through EMR Capital and Owen Hegarty. Hegarty’s coal mine in Siberia has been bankrolled by the Russian state to the tune of millions of pounds. Government approved their nuclear dump advisor’s (Mark Kirkbride/CoRWM) Cumbrian coal mine despite West Cumbria Mining’s financier and director Owen Hegarty’s coal mine interests in Siberia having been bankrolled by the Russian state.
2. The Coal Authority take a lead in honouring the House of Lords call for a ban on any new coal mine licences being issued in the UK. That an earthquake inducing new coal mine should have even been considered so close to Sellafield is utterly reckless with public safety – the forseen consequences could make climate concerns regarding the coal mine pale into insignificance.
3. An inquiry into the dark cronyism surrounding the appointment of the CEO of West Cumbria Mining, Mark Kirkbride, to the position of Government advisor on Geological Disposal of High Level Nuclear Wastes, his coal mine lies between the nuclear dump target areas of Mid Copeland and Allerdale.
The full letter is below:
Dear Coal Authority and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office,
The first deep coal mine in the UK in 30 years announced on May 16th that “we have now successfully closed out a new multimillion pound funding package” What they fail to reveal is where the “multimillion pound” investment is coming from. The initial millions largely spent on public relations and investigative boreholes came from EMR Capital whose owner Owen Hegarty is now a director of West Cumbria Mining. Owen Hegarty also has coal mines in Siberia which have been bankrolled to the tune of tens of millions of pounds both by the Russian State and by Russian equity bank Baring Vostok whose investors have just left prison in Russia after fraud sentences. This all begs the question given the UK Government’s current war footing with Russia why hasn’t the Foreign Office stepped in to investigate West Cumbria Mining’s clear links with Russian State investment through Owen Hegarty?
West Cumbria Mining’s update also fails to mention that their conditional licence from the Coal Authority lapsed in October 2022. The Coal Authority have told us that they have not received a new licence application. The fact that the Coal Authority are even considering giving a new licence to drill to West Cumbria Mining is breathtaking given that the House of Lords called for a ban on any new licences being issued for coal mines. The Coal Authority is also now tasked with looking into the ongoing and seemingly unstoppable pollution pouring into Whitehaven harbour from historic mines which have been newly activated by disturbance. West Cumbria Mining’s extensive borehole and water flushing investigations above Whitehaven cannot be ruled out in part or in whole as a catalyst for Whitehaven Harbour running red with a toxic burden of metals and other pollutants. The honeycomb of mines in Whitehaven includes the Anhydrite mine which West Cumbria Mining wanted to dewater of its uranium, acids and metal contaminated water in order to use this as access to the sub-sea area off Whitehaven. The Environment Agency said this would be too dangerous to marine life. Another bizarre twist in the tale is that the coal mine CEO who wanted to dangerously dewater the old Anhydrite mine into the Irish Sea is also tasked (by the same government department who sponsor the Coal Authority) with advising Government on investigation techniques, construction and costings for a sub-sea nuclear dump euphemistically called a Geological Disposal Facility. This investigation includes seismic blasting of the Irish Sea which has already taken place over the heads of the public despite a petition of over 50,000 signatures.
We urge the Foreign Office to fully investigate West Cumbria Mining’s Russian connections through EMR Capital and Owen Hegarty.
We urge the Coal Authority to take a lead in honouring the House of Lords call for a ban on any new coal mine licences being issued in the UK. That an earthquake inducing new coal mine should have even been considered so close to Sellafield is utterly reckless with public safety – the forseen consequences could make climate concerns regarding the coal mine pale into insignificance.
We urge an inquiry into the dark cronyism surrounding the appointment of the CEO of West Cumbria Mining, Mark Kirkbride, to the position of Government advisor on Geological Disposal of High Level Nuclear Wastes, his coal mine lies between the nuclear dump target areas of Mid Copeland and Allerdale.
Yours sincerely
Marianne Birkby
Keep Cumbrian Coal in the Hole – a Radiation Free Lakeland campaign.
WCM May Updatehttps://www.westcumbriamining.com/wcm-website-news-update-may-2023/
Owen Hegarty new director of WCM https://www.extractiveindustries.co.uk/west-cumbria-mining-appoints-owen-hegarty-as-director/
Funder and now Director of WCM Owen Hegarty Bankrolled by Russian State and Baring Vostok https://www.smh.com.au/business/russians-take-a-large-slice-of-tigers-realm-coal-20140323-35bkq.html
Baring Vostok Fraud Sentences https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2023/03/24/baring-vostok-investors-leave-russia-after-fraud-sentences-expire-a80603
Calls by the House of Lords to ban any new licences being awarded to West Cumbria Mining.
Mark Kirbride Government Nuclear Dump advisor https://www.gov.uk/government/people/mark-kirkbridg
Petition
Keep Cumbrian Coal in the Hole 
Reblogged this on RADIATION FREE LAKELAND and commented:
Here is a description you don’t hear often enough “Nuclear Dump Boss’s Coal Mine”.
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Terrible corruption
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