A controversial new coal mine is just weeks away from opening – unless a small, spotty amphibian gets in the way, that is.
Protesters at the Pont Valley camp near Dipton in Northumbria claim to have found some of the creatures. That could be very bad news for Banks Group, which is rushing to start extracting coal from the site.
Great Crested Newts are protected by European law, and conducting activities to harm the species or their habitat without a license is illegal.
Banks Group do not have the license, because they say there are no Great Crested Newts on site.
