in her replyMr James said the Welsh Government had a duty to manage the „safe closure and rehabilitation of existing and historic mining infrastructure“ and that he did not want a blanket ban. He said this is because the government may also need to mine a small amount of coal incidentally. Construction of infrastructure projects.
A complete ban would have also prevented the situation at FFOS-Y-FRAN, where operator Mercer South Limited is based. continued to mine coal CAN said construction continued for several months despite being refused planning permission by Merthyr Tydfil Borough Council.
Following enforcement action by Merthyr Tydfil Borough Council, mining at FFOS-Y-FRAN was finally scheduled to cease on 30 November 2023. A council spokesperson confirmed that the council had personally visited the site to confirm that coal mining was no longer taking place.
To give permission
this is, quarterly statistics The amount of coal mined at the site from October to December last year was 69,489 tonnes, compared with an average of 111,366 tonnes for the previous three quarters, the Coal Authority said.
Data showed coal mining ended during the last quarter, Tharkelson said. He said the end of coal mining at FFOS-Y-FRAN, the UK's largest open-pit mine, presented „excellent prospects“.
“If we win the Aberpergum case, we could soon see a scenario where there will be no commercial coal mining in the UK in 2024 for the first time in over 400 years. A crisis is coming,” he added.
Even if it loses, it is unclear where Aberpargym operator Energybuild plans to sell the coal from the expanded mine. According to the company's website, about 70% of its coal is currently used for steelmaking and home heating, with the remainder used for mixed industrial uses such as water filtration.it quotes tata steel as a major purchaser. The company did not respond to requests for comment on where it plans to sell its coal, as its UK blast furnaces, including Tata in Port Talbot, are scheduled to close.
Mining permits are still available for the deep coal mining site at Whitehaven, Cumbria. Work on site has not yet begun, but Developer West Cumbria Mining This is expected to begin in 2024. However, a final green light awaits a High Court ruling on two lawsuits by Friends of the Earth and South Lake Climate Action (SLACC) challenging the government's decision. Allow mining.
empty space
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Merthyr Tydfil Borough Council said FFOS-Y-FRAN mine operator Merthyr South Wales is expected to submit a planning application to remediate the site this year.
The company previously admitted it didn't have enough money to restore the site, either in an escrow account it set up with the city council to pay for restoration costs if the funds ran out, or in its own funds. . report to parliament.
Activists and local residents fear the city council will be left with the task of footing the bill. However, Congress Enrolled in January It announced that there was a shortfall of £13 million in the overall budget for 2024/25, increasing to a total of £23.3 million by 2026/27. Preparations are underway to reduce personnel.
The council will have access to £15m held in an escrow account by the operator. However, the cost of repairs has been estimated by the council to be £150 million. The most likely scenario under these circumstances is that the company does not fill the voids left by mining, and instead allows them to be filled with water, Tharkelson said.
restoration
There is precedent for this at other former coal mines in Wales. margamAfter years of litigation, the Neathport Talbot near Bridgend has been forced by Celtic Energy to accept a £5.7m restoration plan, rather than the £58m originally promised.
This has raised concerns about community safety and water pollution, he said. Margam's water bodies are fenced and have danger signs posted to prevent trespassing.
Mr Thirkelson said: 'What the council doesn't want is to try to find £120 million to fix the mine, so the council has no choice but to do whatever is put in front of it. „There's going to be a lot of pressure to get it OK.“ Even if it means cutting the budget for repairs by about 90 percent. ”
CAN is promoting the complete remediation of mine sites by: petition Submission to the Welsh Government and Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council.
this author
Katherine Early is a freelance environmental journalist. ecologist. She tweets at @Cat_Early76.