A new restoration plan is in motion for the Ffos-y-Fran mine in Merthyr Tydfil after the mine’s closure.
The new plan changes the 2011 restoration plan. The Ffos-y-Fran mine closed in November 2023 after the council rejected an extension request. Mining continued after September 2022, the original closure date. Officials issued an enforcement notice because the mine extracted 11 million tons of coal from 2007 to 2023.
The plan will reduce the height of a northern mound visible from Merthyr and the Heads of Valley Road. Workers will reshape the mound and seed it. Exposed rock will stay on the mound’s west side to create features for lichens and mosses, which may attract birds like ravens and peregrines.
Two other mounds will stay mostly the same. They will seed lower slopes with trees. Old reservoirs and dams, including the Dowlais drainage system and settlement lagoons, will remain to benefit biodiversity.
The groundwater lake will remain, featuring shallow banks and margins. Slopes around this lake will get replanted with native trees to form a mixed woodland. Buildings related to the mine, including workshops and fuel storage, are coming down.
Some land will become urban common land used for rough grazing. Fences will mark off some areas, while other areas will become new habitats. These habitats include grassland and woodland, as well as cliffs and wetlands.
Land near the A4060 will be reshaped, allowing for possible light industrial use later. For now, it will be seeded for general use, with footpaths and public rights of way being created, including a byway open to traffic.
The restoration now uses a sustainable method, as large earthworks are considered old-fashioned. This new plan involves less earthworks, making it more affordable. Less earth moving also helps the environment by reducing air quality and noise issues, and reducing carbon use.
The site already shows signs of nature, with wetland habitats now growing by ponds. Great crested newts live in many ponds now. Marsh orchids grew in wetlands and peregrine falcons fly above the site.
The original plan needs significant earthworks. It would destroy current ponds and wetlands. This plan protects the local environment better and allows for more biodiversity growth. The new plan fits nature conservation policies by avoiding harm to plants and animals and making room for improvements, offering environmental benefits.