The UK Government is intending, by means of legislation which forms part of the Growth and Infrastructure Bill (Clause 21), to introduce a 100 hectare threshold on all future mining and quarrying planning applications in England. It has issued a consultation document ‘Nationally significant infrastructure planning: extending the regime to business and commercial projects: consultation’ to assess reaction to their proposals.
This Briefing Note from LOOSE Anti Opencast Network outlines the impact that this proposal would have on current English opencast mine proposals.
See http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2012/11/503382.html.