MP urges action over mine water pollution (From The Northern Echo)

MP urges action over mine water pollution

6:30am Wednesday 9th February 2011 in News By Graeme Hetherington

AN MP is calling for the powers of the Coal Authority to be extended to solve the problem of pollution in a seaside watercourse.

Tom Blenkinsop plans to raise the issue in Parliament today in a bid to ensure the mine water discharges no longer tarnish Saltburn Gill and Saltburn Beck.

The Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland MP believes the water running from the old Longacre Ironstone Mine is having a damaging effect on wildlife.

He said: “Ground water is reacting to the remaining ironstone which turns the water a lurid orange colour.

“The groundwater discharge into Saltburn Gill is very noticeable and, while not a health hazard to humans, does cause irreparable damage to plant life by blocking out sunlight and stifling the oxygen supply.

“Much of Saltburn Gill is a nature reserve and enjoys the designation of being a site of special scientific interest as a relic of our local post-glacial native woodland.

“There are also big implications for Saltburn’s tourist potential.

“The foreshore and the beach are the central attractions in Saltburn, and this pollution is both visible and offputting to tourists as well as to locals.

“This harms the local economy and the jobs that are generated through tourism.

“Luckily, Saltburn is blessed with a good community spirit, and residents have joined together to try and identify ways in which this pollution can be tackled.

“The Saltburn Mine Water Action Group has gone about this in a highly professional way and have managed to gain valuable technical help from both the Environment Agency and, in particular, from the Coal Authority, the leading national body in the identification and eradication of pollution from abandoned mine workings.”

The problem facing the campaign group is compounded by the fact that there is no regulatory body to oversee discharge from disused mines.

The MP added: “The Coal Authority, as its name suggests, was set up to deal with pollution from former coal mines only.

“Indeed, metal mines were excluded from the Coal Authority’s duty to remediate similar water pollution emanating from coal mines.

“This poses a problem, as their remediation expertise is obviously applicable to pollution from old metal mines such as the pits sunk in the east Cleveland ironstone district.”