In this episode, we sit down with two men who helped shape one of the most remarkable grassroots movements on the island of Ireland: the cross-border resistance to fracking along the Leitrim–Fermanagh border.
Back in 2012, when few understood the scale of the threat, farmers, families and community organisers began to join the dots between their wells, their rivers, their land and the industrial plans unfolding around them. Eddie Mitchell and Michael Gallagher were among those who stepped forward early Eddie through community organising and later political leadership, Michael through the farming networks that became central to the campaign’s power.
Together, they helped build a movement that reached across a border steeped in history and division, creating a unity that old politics could never have achieved. What mattered was the land, the water, and the shared responsibility to protect what could not be repaired once damaged.
More than a decade on, the same regions are now facing the prospect of gold mining and the new pressures brought by the Critical Raw Materials agenda. Eddie and Michael reflect on the parallels between then and now, what legislation helped and what failed during the fracking years, and how communities can once again find their strength in each other.
What happened in Leitrim and Fermanagh became a blueprint for us in the Sperrins: act early, work together, ignore old divisions, and build a movement stronger than the industries trying to divide us.
This is an episode about solidarity, courage and the extraordinary power of rural people when they refuse to be divided.
It’s a reminder that borders may exist on maps, but the land tells a very different story.
#dontmineus #SaveOurSperrins #notoxicmining
#EnvironmentPodcast #JusticePodcast
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SAVE OUR SPERRINS ( Social Media)
https://linktr.ee/saveoursperrins
https://www.youtube.com/@SaveOurSperrins
http://caimnetwork.org/mining-in-ireland/
Mining in Ireland is a contentious issue, with 19% of the Republic of Ireland and 27% of Northern Ireland’s land area issued in prospecting licences. While mining companies claim to bring jobs and development, communities like those near Tara Mines and Gypsum Ltd have faced significant environmental and social impacts. Communities Against the Injustice of Mining (CAIM) is an all-island network resisting prospecting and extraction.
https://yestolifenotomining.org/
The Yes to Life, No to Mining website is a global hub for communities resisting destructive mining projects. It shares stories from the frontlines, practical resources for local campaigns, and research that exposes the true costs of extraction. The network connects people around the world who are protecting their land, water, and ways of life, and promotes alternatives grounded in care for nature and community wellbeing.
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/after-the-goldrush-by-gerry-mcgovern/id1681123169
Do Irish people know that Ireland has been selected as a Green sacrifice song for the so-called green technology, renewable energy transition from the beautiful wilds of Clare, Wicklow and Leitrim to the outstanding natural beauty of the Sperrin mountains of Tyrone. Rural Ireland is on Big Mining's chopping block.
This podcast is about the power of community, about how communities of Ireland are organising to stop this disaster happening. For short term returns, the government wants to sell Ireland to mining interests as silently and quietly as possible. Let's make some noises. We will try to unravel why the Irish government is doing this
LINKS TO Greencastle People’s Office(GPO) Facebook Page - and the site of the GPO ( The GPO is a humble caravan which has become a hub for the campaign against the goldmine )
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063579042613&sk=about
https://maps.app.goo.gl/Cz7FHdUoi5ByxECz7?g_st=ipc
