'Epic mismanagement' of opencast mine saga 'must not happen again'
Mike Griffiths reporting from the Ffos-y-Fran mine
The "epic mismanagement" of the Ffos-y-Fran opencast mine saga in Merthyr Tydfil must not happen again to any community in Wales, according to a Senedd committee.
A report by the Climate Change, Environment and Infrastructure Committee calls for lessons to be learnt in how sites are restored after mining permits end.
Ffos-y-Fran mine was the last opencast mine in Wales and the most high-profile site examined by the committee in its report.
The license to extract coal from Ffos-y-Fran expired in September 2022 but the mine continued to operate for another 14 months, closing in November 2023.
When it first opened, the company running the mine pledged to fully restore the site after it finished operations, and the committee heard evidence that since 2017 the company has paid out nearly £50million in dividends and royalties out of the business.
But the report has found that with current restoration costs estimated at between £50m to £120m, and despite the original restoration promises, the company now claims they are unable to afford this, leaving the community worried about the future of the site.
The firm behind the mine, Merthyr (South Wales) Limited, is working on submitting a revised restoration strategy, which Merthyr Tydfil Council hopes will be submitted in November.
'We have huge concerns'
Alyson and Chris Austin, who live near Ffos-y-Fran and are long-term campaigners on the issue, said: "The whole process has been awful and the communication from both the council and the mining company has been appalling throughout.
"They will only tell us anything when they’re absolutely forced to; the local community seem to be at the bottom of their list of priorities.
"We have huge concerns about what the future holds for Ffos-y-Fran. What we’ll be left with is a loose and steep-sided valley with a lake at the bottom; easily accessible by anyone, and a magnet for children.
"We feel like we’ve been hung out to dry by our local authority, the Welsh Government, and government agencies at all levels. The mining company should be keeping to its promise of full restoration and the council shouldn’t let them get away with leaving us with dangerous and derelict land.
"This restoration of derelict and dangerous land was the only benefit to us suffering 17 years of opencast coal mining on our doorsteps. It’s simply not fair that the community is now left in a worse position than we were in before this started."
This series of events has led the committee to call for the Welsh Government to use stronger enforcement measures when planning controls are breached, for example, when mining continued at the site after the licence expiration.
The Senedd committee is also urging more transparency in all aspects of the mining process so the public is aware of how plans develop.
It calls on the Welsh Government to require local authorities to ensure that all planning reports and restoration plans are available online and available to the public.
It also argues that the Welsh Government should encourage the use of citizens’ assemblies as forums for discussing the future of restoration sites, especially in cases where restoration has failed to meet the original plan and compromises may be necessary.
Site owners preparing revised restoration plan
Merthyr (South Wales) Ltd, the firm which operated Ffos-y-Fran, issued a statement in May when invited to appear before the committee, saying an interim restoration programme of works for the site was due to begin in early May following agreement with the council.
The statement said: "MSW have engaged the services of several external consultants, specialists in their field, to prepare a revised restoration plan. MSW continues to discuss with MTCBC and all relevant key stakeholders progress on the revised restoration plan.
"Therefore, it would be inappropriate to comment further until the revised restoration plan has been finalised and submitted to MTCBC for their consideration.”
The firm said a care and maintenance team routinely monitor all safety and environmental aspects of the site, and complete daily checks of the water quality as well as a quarterly water testing programme agreed with Natural Resources Wales.
It said water samples are tested by "an accredited laboratory for a comprehensive suite of determinants. Results indicate there are no determinants that raise a cause for concern to the water environment".
What does Merthyr Tydfil Council say?
Merthyr Tydfil Council, which initially declined to give oral evidence about the restoration of the site to Members of the Senedd, issued a short statement in response to the report, saying: "It is pleasing to note that the Climate Change, Environment & Infrastructure committee commend the council for responding positively and constructively to the inquiry and the recommendations for Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council are noted. These recommendations reflect the requirements of planning legislation that are carried out as part of the procedure of determining planning applications."
But it later issued a further statement, saying: "The council’s position on Ffos-y-Fran is clear, it has consistently acted within its regulatory constraints to monitor the site. Our commitment to ensure that the site is restored remains unwavering."
It said it is actively working with the firm behind the mine, Welsh Government, The Coal Authority, Natural Resources Wales and the Health and Safety Executive "to ensure the site is restored in accordance with the planning permission, as granted and varied by Welsh Government".
The statement said: "We fully understand the concerns regarding the formation of a water body within the mining void. Reports in the media that the water contained within the void is toxic are misleading. The water quality is being regularly monitored by Natural Resources Wales, and water levels are being measured on a weekly basis by Merthyr (South Wales) Limited. Regulatory bodies are confident that the body of water poses no risk to health or safety.
"An independent geotechnical engineer has also recently inspected the site and there are no concerns around its stability or safety. Whilst the site is operational it is also being actively monitored by the Health and Safety Executive.
"Merthyr (South Wales) Limited is currently working on submitting a revised restoration strategy. It is envisaged that this will be submitted in November 2024. Meetings in relation to the revised restoration strategy are being held with the regulators, who form a technical working group. In the meantime, the developer retains a presence onsite and is undertaking restoration of a further 54 hectares of the site, in accordance with the approved restoration strategy.
"Once a revised strategy is submitted, the council will consult with the public, and the relevant bodies, in accordance with planning guidance and legislation.
"The council remains dedicated to resolving the situation at Ffos-y-Fran and we are taking all necessary steps available to us to ensure a positive outcome for our residents and the environment. We assume the other regulatory bodies with responsibilities in this regard will do likewise.
"We will now consider and respond to the Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee’s report by 17th September."
What else did the report say?
The committee’s report also explores the controversial issue of coal tip reclamation and who should pay for securing the safety of more than 2,000 coal tips which blight many communities across Wales.
While the UK Government has provided some extra funding in the last few years to mitigate the risk from nearly 300 high-risk tips, as the matter is devolved, they say that the issue should primarily be dealt with by the Welsh Government.
However, many Welsh politicians have argued that, as coal tips are a legacy of the country’s industrial history which predates devolution, the UK Government should bear the costs of the longer-term work to make coal tips safe.
The committee’s report urges the Welsh Government to engage with the UK Government to seek funding for coal tip remediation.
'Transparency has been a real problem'
Llyr Gruffydd MS, chair of the Climate Change, Environment and Infrastructure Committee, said, “This report details some of the most egregious examples of the broken promises made to communities across Wales.
"There has been an epic mismanagement of these mines, by all parties, from start to finish.
"Mining companies have racked up enormous profits but when it’s time to fulfil their restoration promises, the wallet is empty. They do as they please and local communities foot the bill.
"This is why it's so important for community ownership to be considered in any new development, which could lead to more responsible management of mining sites.
"Residents told us they felt they had been completely failed by the public authorities who are meant to protect them. Too often they have seemed to be on the side of the mining companies.
"Transparency has been a real problem with residents struggling to get answers from their councils when they have asked legitimate questions about mining near their homes.
"Time is quickly running out to secure what was promised for the local community in Ffos-y-Fran. We urge the Welsh Government, Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council, and other local authorities, to learn the lessons from this report, so these mistakes are never repeated in opencast mines or coal tip reclamations."
What does Welsh Government say?
The Welsh Government says it is "closely monitoring" the situation at Ffos-y-Fran, while it has committed to introducing new legislation this Senedd term to deal with the legacy of centuries of mining and to ensure coal tip safety for Wales.
A Welsh Government spokesperson said: "We thank the committee for their work over the past several months and their report. We will consider the report’s findings and recommendations and respond in due course."
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