New opencast mines rip open valuable green space inflicting noise, pollution and heavy traffic on the people in the immediate area. All the local inquiries CPRE has been involved in show that local communities overwhelmingly oppose these new mines. Even when they provide jobs, they make the area less inviting to other potential investors.

Opencast mines and quarries scar the landscape for years at a time, often in areas of prime agricultural land. Some mines have been well restored and are now thriving habitats, but even these cannot bring back the original landscape and wildlife. And often, they are simply left in the hope that the site will be developed as an industrial park or warehouse.

Our viewWe are campaigning against the proposals to increase opencast mining in England.Not only do opencast mines deface some of our finest landscapes and wreck tranquillity, they have a devastating effect on nearby communities and wildlife, and they increase our carbon emissions at a time when we are supposed to be reducing them. We want England’s untapped coal reserves left in the ground until proven carbon capture and storage technology is working at our coal fired power stations.Instead, we want to see a genuine mix of renewable energy, from wide-spread offshore wind turbines to small-scale schemes that will power up local areas.