Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome this week's news, as confirmed by the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment on Monday, that Great Glen Resources has withdrawn its application for a prospecting licence in County Donegal. The mining of barytes, base metals, gold and silver in the Glenfin area would have had a negative impact on the environment, the landscape and the health of the local people. I believe the withdrawal of the application is a vindication of the strength of the local communities that came out in full force against the issuing of a prospecting licence. The proposed mining activities would have had a negative impact on 52 townlands across County Donegal. Last week, I attended a public meeting organised by people in the Glenfin area who objected to the issuing of an exploratory licence and the consequent granting of an extraction licence in the event of deposits being found. The residents of the Glenfin area have seen for themselves the problems caused by exploratory licences in communities like Greencastle, County Tyrone. A prospecting licence has been granted to a Canadian company, Dalradian, which is now exploring for gold in Greencastle. Dalradian has plans to mine for gold in the Sperrin hills and valleys and to build a massive toxic mineral processing plant. This will involve waste dumps full of discarded rock, which will have been processed using cyanide and other chemicals, being left behind all over the Sperrins, which have been designated as an area of outstanding natural beauty. An unprecedented 10,000 objections were lodged against the Greencastle plan as a result of the work of the Save our Sperrins campaign, which successfully galvanised local communities into action and is continuing to call for an end to the granting of mining licences in the North. This should indicate to the Minister how strongly the communities that will be most affected by the granting of mining licences are objecting to these proposals. Great Glen Resources has turned away for now, but the open call for applications for prospecting licences will remain open until the end of this week. Communities in County Donegal want to say "No" to Great Glen Resources and a permanent "No" to mining. They are looking for a commitment from the Minister that the granting of prospecting licences now and into the future will cease. Will the Minister commit to the preservation of our rural communities, natural habitats, biodiversity and climate action goals by ceasing the granting of all prospecting licences from here on?

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