A decision on whether to allow a new opencast coal mine to be dug on the outskirts of Ponteland will be made in a matter of weeks.

Newcastle City Council said that it would rule on Banks Mining’s plans to extract 800,000 tonnes of coal from green belt land at Dewley Hill by the end of 2020.

Campaigners desperate to stop the development are now making final pleas to the city councillors who will decide its fate.

Protest banners were displayed over the A69 last week and the Defend Dewley Hill group has produced a video and an open letter urging councillors to refuse planning permission for the scheme.

Members of the council’s planning committee were given a virtual tour of the site last week ahead of making a decision on Banks’ controversial plans.

It is understood that the proposals could face a hearing at one of the next scheduled meetings on November 20 or December 18.

Jackie Robson, a resident living close to Dewley Hill, said: “There’s no way we want to see this land lost to opencast. I have concerns about how this proposed open cast will affect the physical and mental health of people like me and the wider community, especially when we have seen how valuable it is during this pandemic.”

Jeannie Raine, community relations manager at The Banks Group, defend the proposal and said the proposed works will be delivered with the “lowest possible environmental impact”.

She said: “At a time when we are facing an unprecedented economic crisis, it makes no sense whatsoever to hand much-needed North East jobs and supply chain investment to Russian miners and businesses, who will be delighted to meet British industry’s continuing need for these essential minerals whilst simultaneously significantly increasing global greenhouse gas emissions.”