A CANADIAN company has dropped plans to explore the possibility of zinc mining in the region because of a potential conflict between industry and landscape.

Falconbridge, based in Ontario, had expressed interest in testing a site near old lead workings at Nenthead, in Cumbria, which could have created 300 jobs close to the County Durham border.

Although conservation officers had said it would not have definitely opposed the pan, Falconbridge pulled out following a number of concerns, including its position inside the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).

Independent consultant geologist Peter Tyler, who had worked with the company on the project, said they had been serious about the plans and had approved a considerable budget to be spent on exploration in the area next year.

He said the decision came after talks with planning authorities in Cumbria and Northumberland and with the Environment Agency, but not with the AONB.

Mr Tyler said: "The problem is the hurdle that the AONB and their mandate, which is to conserve and enhance landscape, brings.

"It just introduces an uncertainty from the company's point of view and a level of risk which they are not able to accept."