Anti-mining group celebrates ten years of campaigning

A SPECIAL event has taken place to mark the tenth anniversary of the formation of the ‘Save Our Sperrins’ campaign group, which has been working against plans for a goldmine in the area.

The group is opposed to North American firm Dalradian’s plans to build an underground goldmine at Curraghinalt, near Greencastle. The long-running project has been met with both support for potential jobs and investment and opposition due to environmental concerns, particularly regarding water contamination.

A public inquiry to assess the project’s merits and potential impacts was suspended earlier this year.

Since Dalradian’s proposed mine was first announced, those opposed to it have called for the protection of the natural environment in the region.

Protests have also taken place at the company’s various bases, including in Gortin and on the Camcosy Road between Gortin and Greencastle.

The celebration event marking ten years since the formation of Save Our Sperrins took place at the An Creagan Visitors Centre, between Omagh and Cookstown. It was billed as ‘Marking a Decade of Environmental Protection of the Sperrins’.

Among those in attendance were activists, artists, legal scholars and international human rights activists. They reflected on what are described as ten years of ‘struggle, solidarity and community action’.

Keynote speaker was Mary Lawlor, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders. She spoke on the importance of protecting environmental campaigners and the landscapes that they are defending.

“Her presence sent a powerful and encouraging message to local people that the resistance in the Sperrins is part of a much broader international fight for environmental and human rights,” said the chair of Save Our Sperrins, Marella Fyffe.

“This event was about honouring the people who stood up and are still standing up for the land, for pure water and clean air and for future generations.”

Other panellists at the event included Eamonn McCann, of Environmental Gathering in Derry, Lynda Sullivan, from Communities Against the Injustice of Mining, Dr Amy Strecker, of Sutherland School of Law at University College Dublin, and James Orr, director of Friends of the Earth NI.