Mine firm appeals as extraction due to end
AN APPEAL has been submitted at the eleventh hour by the UK’s largest opencast coalmine against an order for the digging of coal to stop.
Those behind the operation of Ffos-y-Fran in Merthyr Tydfil, mining firm Merthyr (South Wales) Ltd, have had an enforcement notice issued against them, which would have taken effect on Tuesday, and given them 28 days to stop mining, following the expiration of planning permission at the site in September 2022.
But BBC Wales reports that the Welsh Government said yesterday morning it was understood the company would appeal against the enforcement notice, with a spokesman adding that no further comment could be issued as it risked jeopardising “any future decision Welsh ministers may have to make on the matter”.
The mining firm confirmed an appeal had “been lodged with the Welsh ministers” but chose not to comment further while the process was ongoing.
Chris Austin, 67, who lives near the mine, has long campaigned against it as part of the United Valleys Action Group of local residents.
He told the BBC: “We are extremely disappointed, and frustrated, to hear that the mining company has appealed the enforcement action. If accepted, the appeal could take 12 months or more to resolve, so we again urge that a ‘stop order’ be put in place whilst this appeal is determined.
“To us, and surely any reasonable person, this is just common sense. The mining company doesn’t have the planning consent required to continue mining coal at Ffos-y-Fran; that is absolute, so why are they being allowed to continue to do so?”
The company asked for more time to mine at Ffos-y-Fran days before it ran out on September 6, 2022, but it took until April 2023 for the application to be discussed and refused by the planning committee of Merthyr council.
In the meantime, mining continued, with 199,307 tonnes of coal being produced between September 7, 2022, and March 31, 2023, according to figures.
Once an appeal against an enforcement notice is lodged, Welsh Government guidance suggests that a decision would be received “within 27 weeks but it can take longer”, meaning mining could potentially continue for a further six months.
Lawyers acting on behalf of campaign group Coal Action Network have said the situation brings the planning system “into disrepute”.
They have accused the local authority and Welsh Government of “maladministration” – arguing that they have potentially acted unlawfully in failing to deal with the matter more urgently and issuing what’s known as a “stop notice”.