This is why Extinction Rebellion protesters marched through Harrogate dressed totally in red
Climate activists from Extinction Rebellion Harrogate have walked through the town in striking red cloaks in a protest against expansion plans by Harrogate Spring Water.
Starting at 11am yesterday, Sunday, ‘The Red Rebels’ walked from Harrogate railway station through the town centre, past Bettys tearooms to the Valley Gardens and through the Pinewoods to the Harrogate Springwater plastic bottle factory.
During the slow march, XR members from Harrogate, Ilkley and Leeds handed out leaflets raising awareness of the planning application from Harrogate Spring Water to extend their water bottling factory into the community Rotary Wood.
The decision to wear red was to symbolise “the common blood we share with all species,” protesters said.
This rare appearance in Harrogate by XR was designed to highlight the green activists’ opposition to the proposed expansion by Harrogate Spring Water, now owned by multinational conglomerate Danone, which, they claim, would lead to “catastrophic environmental damage” and the “destruction of the local water table”.
Harrogate Spring Water originally secured outline planning permission to build a larger bottling plant in 2017 to meet demand for its bottled water, which is a brand leader.
It is now seeking to win councillors’ backing for the reserved matters stage which deals with the appearance, size and landscaping of the extension.
Since the controversy made national headlines, the firm has pledged to replace the trees at Rotary Wood planted by Harrogate schoolchildren in 2005, which are set to be lost, in a way which meets the needs of the community.