Visited on my own in September, Wistow mine was another part of the 'Selby super pit'.
It began drilling in 1976, and producing coal in the early 80's, the site finally ceased production in October 2004.
The main office buildings have been demolished, but the workshops and warehouse are still standing, the pit shaft is concrete lined and 7.135m in diameter, and 415m in depth, it is capped off and fenced with a vent pipe, stillingfleet, another part of the super pit is currently extracting methane gas for power generation, iam wondering if there are plans to do this here aswell, due to the nice yellow pipe and new fencing, escrick does not have one of these, but is part of the same complex.
a nice mooch, on a nice morning, just the birds and rabbits around.
this site has been pikied but not trashed like the others, maybe because its well out the way, i dont know.
loved the chair, its the only one on the entire site, and dosent look like its moved since a previous report a couple of years ago.
The Guardian, Tuesday 26 October 2004
Twenty years ago the Selby coalfield, the most advanced of its kind, came into operation, promising jobs for life and long-term prosperity for the region. Yet today, the last of the five pits closes down. Hilary Macaskill visits the site to find out what went wrong
When Wistow mine, the first of the five in the Selby coalfield, began producing coal in 1983, it was a mine that people from all over the world came to see: this was the first new British coalfield for half a century, the biggest pit in Europe. Tucked away on a quiet country road in Yorkshire, screened by hundreds of young trees, its winding gear encased in mellow York stone, it didn't look like other pits. But by the end of that decade and well into the 90s, Wistow was smashing production records. It seemed to confirm the early confidence of the coal industry that this would be a "job for life", with reserves that would last well into the 21st century, as Derek Ezra, chairman of the National Coal Board had stated: "The superb reserves of Selby are going to play a vital part in Britain's industrial regeneration."
Now Wistow is deserted. A notice reads, "Welcome to Wistow. This mine is environmentally friendly - keep it clean to keep it green," but the last coal was mined back in May. The only sound is wind rustling the leaves of the trees, the occasional twittering of birds. From here, as from all points in this flat, verdant landscape below York, the eye is drawn south to the cooling towers of Eggborough power station, peacefully puffing out clouds of steam, once the destination for the coal and a poignant reminder of what this was all for.
on with the piccies
door of banana stickers....
The only chair on the entire site.
thanks for looking
It began drilling in 1976, and producing coal in the early 80's, the site finally ceased production in October 2004.
The main office buildings have been demolished, but the workshops and warehouse are still standing, the pit shaft is concrete lined and 7.135m in diameter, and 415m in depth, it is capped off and fenced with a vent pipe, stillingfleet, another part of the super pit is currently extracting methane gas for power generation, iam wondering if there are plans to do this here aswell, due to the nice yellow pipe and new fencing, escrick does not have one of these, but is part of the same complex.
a nice mooch, on a nice morning, just the birds and rabbits around.
this site has been pikied but not trashed like the others, maybe because its well out the way, i dont know.
loved the chair, its the only one on the entire site, and dosent look like its moved since a previous report a couple of years ago.
The Guardian, Tuesday 26 October 2004
Twenty years ago the Selby coalfield, the most advanced of its kind, came into operation, promising jobs for life and long-term prosperity for the region. Yet today, the last of the five pits closes down. Hilary Macaskill visits the site to find out what went wrong
When Wistow mine, the first of the five in the Selby coalfield, began producing coal in 1983, it was a mine that people from all over the world came to see: this was the first new British coalfield for half a century, the biggest pit in Europe. Tucked away on a quiet country road in Yorkshire, screened by hundreds of young trees, its winding gear encased in mellow York stone, it didn't look like other pits. But by the end of that decade and well into the 90s, Wistow was smashing production records. It seemed to confirm the early confidence of the coal industry that this would be a "job for life", with reserves that would last well into the 21st century, as Derek Ezra, chairman of the National Coal Board had stated: "The superb reserves of Selby are going to play a vital part in Britain's industrial regeneration."
Now Wistow is deserted. A notice reads, "Welcome to Wistow. This mine is environmentally friendly - keep it clean to keep it green," but the last coal was mined back in May. The only sound is wind rustling the leaves of the trees, the occasional twittering of birds. From here, as from all points in this flat, verdant landscape below York, the eye is drawn south to the cooling towers of Eggborough power station, peacefully puffing out clouds of steam, once the destination for the coal and a poignant reminder of what this was all for.
on with the piccies
door of banana stickers....
The only chair on the entire site.
thanks for looking
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