CAMPAIGNERS are celebrating after a coal company abandoned plans to open a large opencast mine on their doorstep.

An appeal had been expected after UK Coal Surface Mines was refused permission by Durham County Council’s planning committee for a 123-hectare opencast, amid fears about its impact on tourism.

But the appeal time has run out and the company said it no longer had an interest in the site, which straddles the border between County Durham and Gateshead.

The company had wanted to extract more than one million tonnes of coal and 175,000 tonnes of fireclay from the former pit site, now largely farmland, between Stanley in County Durham and Marley Hill, in Gateshead borough.

It had been proposed to extract the minerals over three years before restoring the site, the total “green to green” life of the project being four-and-a-half years.

The proposed site is close to the historic Causey Arch bridge and the Tanfield Railway heritage line, which would have been extended by 2km as part of the restoration of the site.

Durham county councillor Alan Shield, who spearheaded opposition to the plans, said: “I am both extremely delighted and relieved.

“We had issues with visual amenity, as it would have been seen from Stanley and other prominent conurbations in County Durham.

“But the main reason we objected was because they intended to dig up 40,000 tonnes of contaminated material which was predominantly on the Gateshead side and sink that into the proposed void which was going to be on the County Durham side.

“I hope it now shows the level of reality that UK coal cannot ride roughshod over communities which we elected to serve.”

The plans had been approved by earlier by Gateshead Council.

Cllr Johnathan Wallace who led the campaign against the plans on that authority, said: “Residents will be breathing a sigh of relief that this plan will no longer be going ahead.

"There was considerable anger among people living in Marley Hill, Sunniside, Streetgate and Lobley Hill when Gateshead Council have approval to the plan.

Several organisations, including the North-East Chamber of Commerce and Tanfield Railway Volunteers, backed the scheme.

UK Coal Surface Mines spokesman said the company no longer had an interest in the site.

Meanwhile, the outcome to public inquiry into UK Coal’s plans to extract more than 520,000 tonnes of coal from the Bradley site, at nearby Leadgate, is being awaited.