Fears mine will not be re-landscaped after closure

Ffos-y-Fran in Merthyr Tydfil will close on 30 November

Concerns have been raised that the closure of the UK’s last opencast coalmine could be an "environmental disaster".

On Tuesday, Ffos-y-Fran operators Merthyr (South Wales) Ltd announced the site would close on 30 November.

Most of its 115 employees are set to be made redundant, prompting fears that the area will no longer be re-landscaped back to green hillside for the community, as previously planned.

But union Unite said the company was consulting with the council on several restoration plans which could retain some staff.

Merthyr (South Wales) Ltd submitted a notification to the Welsh government confirming the closure date after its planning permission ran out in September 2022 and its appeal for more time was refused by the local council.

Nearly 11,128,000 tonnes of coal have been produced at Ffos-y-Fran since it first opened at the start of 2008.

It is the size of about 400 football pitches and clearly visible on the hillside east of Merthyr Tydfil.

"To say it's an eyesore is an understatement," said Val Williams, a social historian who lives nearby.

She told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast: "Promises were made that it would be put back better than it was. I don't see any possibility of that being fulfilled now so I think at this moment it's a lose-lose situation.

"People have lost their jobs and people have got an environmental disaster still left there."

Ms Williams said the "hideous" and "revolting" sight of the mine would have a "knock-on effect on houses and the area in general".

Jason Bartlett, regional officer for Unite, said: "I don't think the company is going to walk away. They're not going to just leave the site in just a hole there.

"They want to try and restore it. But obviously they need the help of the borough council to come up with a restoration plan on how they're going to do it."

Merthyr council's planning committee previously heard from a planning expert that re-landscaping the site would cost between £75m and £125m, but a bank account managed by the council which the firm had been paying into had £15m in it.

Haf Elgar, director of Friends of the Earth Cymru said the company had "a legal duty to restore the site so that it is safe and accessible to the local community".

She added: "We were expecting that the workers would continue with that work for two or three more years, so it’s very disappointing if their contracts are to be terminated at such short notice."

Haf Elgar, director of Friends of the Earth says the operators have a "legal duty" to restore the site

The site is also understood to be one of the suppliers to the Tata Steelworks in Port Talbot, meaning Tata will have to source more of its coal from overseas.

Steel industry experts estimate the move will cost the company tens of millions of pounds per year.

Tata is involved in negotiations with the UK government over funding to decarbonise its blast furnaces at Port Talbot.

It has been offered £300m, but that is less than the 1bn Euros offered by some EU governments to steelworks in their respective countries.

The company said it had plans to become net zero by 2045 and it was "important to continue to maintain a strong network of raw material suppliers to support our operations and our customers".

Welsh Conservative climate spokeswoman Janet Finch-Saunders said she was "genuinely concerned" that Wales would become "even more reliant on imports" due to the closure.

“Labour and Plaid Cymru need to recognise that it is completely irresponsible to pursue policies that offshore carbon footprints to other, usually far poorer and less developed nations, than ours."

Llyr Gruffydd, chairman of the Senedd's climate change committee, said: "We will continue to press the Welsh government to provide answers on support for the redundant workers as well as the fund for restoring land."

The Welsh government said it was working with the union to ensure "we provide a comprehensive package of support to those impacted".

A spokesman added that questions about the ongoing restoration were "a matter for discussion between the council and operator in the first instance".

Merthyr Tydfil council declined to comment.