Wrekin mining protesters in ‘padlock’ threat amid eviction fight
Tuesday 7th September 2010, 2:55PM BST.
Protesters fighting plans to mine 900,000 tonnes of coal from a Shropshire beauty spot today said they would padlock themselves to trees in a bid to avoid eviction.
They have also said they will not budge from the “many” tunnels they have dug around the site at Huntington Lane in Little Wenlock.
It comes after UK Coal, the company given permission to mine the site, last month revealed legal papers were being prepared to evict the protesters.
Spokesman for UK Coal, Stuart Oliver, said if protesters did not leave peacefully, they would be forcibly evicted.
But today a spokesman for the protesters said they had stepped up their campaign to fight the coal company and they now have people living in tunnels and tree houses.
He said: “We have no intention of moving and we are beginning to get everything we need to stay there. People are being very supportive and bringing us things and we have padlocks now.
“There are many tunnels with people living in them and we have a few tree houses with people in them too.
“We have built a Celtic roundhouse and a new kitchen and there is plenty of room for people to stay when they come. I don’t think people realise how bad it’s going to be when mining starts. The place is full of history and nature and it shouldn’t be touched.”
Mr Oliver said the company hopes to start work on the site by the autumn and added a “national eviction team” will be drafted in to remove any protesters who do not leave peacefully.
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