Demonstrators from Extinction Rebellion display a banner as a site security member looks on during a protest at Banks Group’s open-cast coal mine in Bradley, County Durham, Britain February 26, 2020. REUTERS/Scott Heppell
LONDON (Reuters) – Climate protest group Extinction Rebellion held a demonstration at a coal mine in the north of England on Wednesday, as part of a three-day campaign against the site’s expansion.
The coal mine in Bradley, Durham, is owned by Banks Group and is open-cast, meaning that coal is extracted at a level near the surface rather than from deep underground.
Around 500,000 tonnes of coal are due to be mined at the site before the project’s completion in 2021.
Some protesters dressed as canaries in cages – a reference to the idea that the death of a canary in a coal mine is an early warning of dangerous gases – while others wore hard hats and hi-vis gear to look like site workers.
They banged drums and put up banners saying “Coal is our heritage not our future” and “When you’re in a hole, stop digging!”.
Reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft, Editing by Paul Sandle
