Dear Camp for Climate Action,

Firstly thank you for contacting me. I'm hopping mad about what I've heard, but I may not have been told the whole story. I can tell you too the mining community whats left of us feel utterly betrayed by rumours about you swinging all your efforts to close down what remains of the coal industry. There are debates about counter-demonstrations etc and press statements from the power workers and miners. So its vital we do not take up cudgels over this unless and until and at least that we know where each other stand. I was a matter of interest with the National General secretary of the NUM and the Yorkshire Area Leadership last weekend and they are spitting feathers about the Drax demonstration. The slogans on the demonstration and the statements made to the press by the protestsrs demonstrated no concern for the miners, railway workers or power workers. There was no consultation with us, no debate with us, no seeing what we wanted or how we see the world or how we can see if there is anything is common. 'Leave It In The Ground' was the banner which was unfurled at Drax, 'it' being the coal, and the miners ? where do we leave them ? that bit wasn't answered. We know where John Major and Maggie Thatcher and Harold Wilson left us, on the dung heap, and most of us are still there.

Our own demands would be two fold, firstly we want to see the opening of 'clean coal technology stations'. Yes the technology exists and had done since the 50s but nobody was interested in applying it. There are at least two methods, but the latest one is carbon capture, thats not the end of the story but here isn't the place to elaborate. Enough to say its not a con, it does produce massive savings in CO2 emissions, plus the bi product of the Hatfield Main system is hydrogen and energy conservation. Which are added bonuses on the carbon capture.

Secondly we want to see international ('fair trade' if you like ) standards applied to all imported coal and a level playing field in terms of health and safety, conditions, hours and union recognition . Countries with mass slaughter in the collieries should not be allowed to dump coal here at the expense of workers in their countries and unemployment for miners here.

65 million Tonnes of coal is burned in Britain each year only about 18 million of it is mined here, despite the fact that British coal is the cheapest deep mined coal in the world. It is brought here in part because rather than fit wipers and efficient filters to all power stations, they import coal which produces less sulphur and ash and carbon when burned. Instead they burn the miners at source.

There is about 500 years of coal in Britain, it can provide a breathing space, to develop renewable sources, certainly solar, yes tidal, though not destructive wind estates which are laying siege to the bits of free land and crags and moorland we have left.

The governments main plan is and always been to make Britain Nuclear dependant. That is why they closed down the mines in the first place. Climate Camp must be very careful not to cross on the wrong side of the barricade on this issue. Not to be used to promote Nuclear energy by making the biggest focus coal .

The spokesperson at Drax this month said there was NO PLACE for coal in Britain's energy supply ! Thats fairly final. The impact of that statement, coming as it does with a middle class voice and total indifference to the situation in the coal communities, is unlikely to strike any cords this side of the tracks.

I understand you intend to shut down Kingsnorth Power Station in August. I don't know this station in particular but I was informed this was a station which was using clean coal technology ? Is that not right ? whether it is or not we have to ask why coal ?.

Coal is not the biggest producer of CO2 its about the fourth and thats with unfettered uncontrolled emissions from the third world in particular. It could be massively reduced by demanding all coal which comes here meets minimum standards of health and safety and union rights. That the exporting countries themselves adopt clean coal technologies. Such a tighter focus would be entirely more credible and principled than simply saying 'close down all coal power stations, don't build new ones, and exterminate the last of the miners and their communities'.

I cant say I'm keen on entering the lions den of the Climate Camp as a former miners leader and life long coal miner. I'm tempted to say I think we speak differant languages. However I shall pencil this is my calender and see if I can attend along with any of the NUM leadership in order that we can put our point view across and hopefully get you to adopt a more balanced approach to the question of power generation and working class expectations and demands.

You have my permission to put this letter on the website.

The World For The Workers

David Douglass
NUM

**

Dave

Thanks for your reply. So a few things to say.

First of all lets be clear part of our messge is about Just Transition. This was not reported widley although it did make it into the Gaurdian today."we have to make a just transition to a low-carbon economy. People in the coal industry have to be at the centre of the new economy, as in Germany, where 250,000 'green collar' jobs have been created (from solar and other technologies). They have to be given support". It wasn't widly reported because it dosn't fit with the medias agenda but for us you cant just close down an industry without securing work with similar levels of pay and conditions in other industies. In other words it's not worth making that transtion if you fuck people over in the proccess. For us justice and workers rights have to be central to this transition.

We do think that burning coal without CCS has no future. The impacts of climate change hit the poor first and hardest so if your driven by a global interst in the condtion people at the bottom of the pile cliamte change is a crucial thing to deal with. That said I aggree that we should use deep mined coal from the UK as we make the transition to zero carbon power sources and should CCS be developed your prescription for the use of fair trade coal makes total sense.

In my view 'environomentalists have failed miserably to engage in class politics and i certainly think if were going to engage in the issue of coal then were going to have to. But the union movement is hardly perfect. No industry is ever willing to admit there is a problem with there particular sector the union movement is so sectoral and unwilling to work together to find overall solutions to the problems we face.

Unless we develope CCS then yes the harsh truth is we have to as a society find a way of moving beyond coal. Like I've said that dosn't mean leaving miners in the lurch it means making a just transtion over time.

We dont want to just solve the problem of climate change we want solve the problem of explotation and inequality as well.

I think there is much that we can aggree on and if there are appropriate meetings that we could come and talk at it would be great to start a dialoge. The climate camp isn't a lions den. It full of people who might be more niave than your used to but who at heart are probably on the same side as you and are determined to deal with the issue of cliamte change and socail justice.

Yes the camp is at Kingsnorth this year. Unfourtuanatly this isn't a clean coal plant. It might have a small percentage running with CCS but in the main its just going to be a standard coal fired power station.

All the best,
Paul
Camp for Climate Action

Why has the letter by Dave Douglass been removed?

can someone at IM let me know