This webinar draws on the recently launched report, ‘Coal Mine Restoration in South Wales’, revealing the injustices and broken promises surrounding the restoration of 7 opencast coal mines in South Wales. It serves as a stark warning for any future coal mine proposals.
The webinar will offer a whistle-stop overview of the desk-based and primary research findings, with key analysis and recommendations. You'll see photo evidence that's been exclusively shared with us of the current state these former coal mines are in.
This webinar was first run in December 2022
Time: 11am-12'noon (1 hour)
Date: Tuesday 14th February 2023
Eligibility: this webinar is intended for staff at relevant councils in South Wales
Registration required: contact us for details.
The research finds that mining companies have consistently evaded millions in restoration costs, and Local Planning Authorities struggle to keep promises made to local communities impacted by unrestored or poorly restored coal mines. Field research indicates that even those sites which Local Planning Authorities claimed to be fully restored contain uncovered and leaking storage tanks of industrial chemicals, abandoned warehouses, concrete platforms, and no-go zones sectioned off with barbed wire.
The ‘Coal Mine Restoration in South Wales’ report updates a 2014 Welsh Government report, ‘Research into the failure to restore opencast coal sites in south Wales’ on the state of restoration across Wales, which flagged these sites as liabilities for being left unrestored or poorly restored.
This nature was photographed around 50 metres from the edge of the Glan Lash opencast coal mine in Ammanford, South Wales. It shows the thriving ecosystems surrounding the Glan Lash opencast coal mine which has remained dormant since 2019…
In February, CAN gave oral testimony to the Climate Change, Energy, and Infrastructure Committee (CCEIC) on the Disused Mine and Quarry Tips (Wales) Bill…
Coal Action Network was invited to attend Westminster where we gave evidence to the Welsh Affairs Committee in their inquiry about the environmental and economic legacy of Wales’ industrial past, alongside Friends of the Earth Cymru. This inquiry was opened in…
16 years of opencast coal mining in Ffos-y-fran has generated colossal overburden mounds, also known as slag heaps or coal tips. There are three coal tips, with the third being the largest, and cumulatively accounting for 37 million cubic metres of colliery spoil, rocks, and soil…
We were invited for the second time to give oral evidence to the Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee of the Welsh Parliament (Senedd) on 05th February 2025. We shared the panel with Haf, Director of FOE Cymru, to provide our opinion on the weaknesses, strengths…
Merthyr (South Wales) Ltd mined for over a year illegally after planning permission for the Ffos-y-fran opencast coal mine ended in September 2022. During that year, it made record-breaking profits due to sanctions on Russia and other factors driving up the price of coal. But rather than using some of the profits from that ill-gotten coal…
MSW claims “It was established that there are insufficient funds available to achieve the 2015 restoration strategy and therefore an alternative scheme is required.” (EIA Scoping Report, July 2024)… To our knowledge, there has been no evidence submitted by MSW that it cannot fund the full restoration it is contracted to undertake…
The UK Government launched a consultation on a limited review of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) for 8 weeks from 30 July to 24 September 2024. The NPPF is an influential document that shapes planning decisions and priorities across England. It is periodically updated by the Government, following a public consultation…
Bryn Bach Coal Ltd attempts to present the anthracite coal it wishes to extract from an expansion of Glan Lash as a unique and scarce commodity that is needed for water filtration, bricks, and graphite, and would therefore be too valuable to burn. Yet, visiting Energybuild Ltd’s…
[…] This webinar marks the launch of a report, ‘Coal Mine Restoration in South Wales’, revealing the injustices and broken promises surrounding the restoration of 7 opencast coal mines in South Wales. It serves as a stark warning for any future coal mine proposals. […]