24 May 2007
The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Scotland saw first hand the environmental benefits being demonstrated in East Ayrshire during a visit to the third largest UK coal producer's opencast mine on 24 May.
David Cairns MP was given a tour of the site where he met employees and saw coal extraction operations and transportation at work at ATH Resources Glenmuckloch site, near New Cumnock. The site houses the longest overland conveyor in Europe, at over 12km long which allows ATH to transport coal from the surface mine at Glenmuckloch to the ATH railhead, then onwards by rail to electricity power stations.
The Minister said:
"It has been a genuine pleasure to come here today and see first-hand how the site operates as a prime example of how coal can be transported with as minimal environmental impact as possible.
"The conveyor that ATH have constructed allows the vast quantities of coal, around 2.2 million tonnes in fact, to be extracted whilst removing the need for the massive 254,000 lorry journeys, or 9 million lorry miles, that would have been required to otherwise transport it."
He added:
"The Government's recent Energy Review clearly indicated the generation of electricity from indigenous coal will be a significant element of the UK's future energy mix, particularly given the ongoing emergence of clean coal technology.
"The Glenmuckloch mine has an important role to play in supplying power plants across the UK as well as providing significant numbers of local jobs throughout the rural communities of East Ayrshire. "
The Minister earlier visited Thales Optronics Ltd in Glasgow, a major defence, aerospace and electronics company, where he was given a tour of the factory and took the opportunity to meet employees.