Fossil free Wales
It's clear that new fossil fuel developments, including extending existing coal mines and extracting new oil, coal and gas that will add more emissions to the atmosphere, aren't compatible with tackling climate change.
That's why in Wales we're fought extensions to coal mines like Ffos y Fran and Glan Lash and we're calling for a ban on all new coal extraction.
We're supporting local communities, and with help from our legal and planning team.
Ffos y Fran proposal is a ‘betrayal’ say local campaigners
Hundreds of local people have objected to the revised ‘restoration’ plan for Ffos y Fran opencast coal mine, currently being considered by Merthyr Tydfil Council.
Wales’ Fourth Carbon Budget advice - our response
Friends of the Earth Cymru respond the UK Climate Change Committee’s (CCC) Wales’ Fourth Carbon Budget advice, published today (14 May 2025).
Wales’s coal tip bill must protect people and planet
A bill to keep communities safe from coal tips has now passed Stage 1 in the Senedd, but it must be amended to avoid unintended consequences.
Failure to restore opencast sites letting communities down
A Senedd committee report is a stark warning that the current system is failing people and the planet, time after time.
Disused Mine and Quarry Tips (Wales) Bill - our response
Read our stage 1 response to a bill which aims to reduce the likelihood of landslides on disused coal and non-coal tips through the establishment of a new public body.
Coal tip safety but not at the expense of the planet
Energy Recovery Investments (ERI) Reclamation Ltd is proposing to remove 500,000 tonnes of coal over five years from two coal tips in Bedwas and use sales from the coal to restore the site.
Port Talbot steel announcement – Friends of the Earth reaction
The move to green steel should be done fairly, to secure Port Talbot’s future, create long-term, sustainable jobs and put areas like this at the forefront of the transition to a clean economy.
Wales’ last opencast coal mine proposal turned down in historic decision
Carmarthenshire councillors put nature and climate first today (Thursday 14 September), by saying no to further opencast coal mining at Glan Lash opencast mine in Carmarthenshire.
Restore Ffos y Fran, urge campaigners
The owner of Ffos y Fran coal mine stopped mining on 30 November 2023, but local campaigners don’t want them to just leave – they want them to restore the site as promised.
Carmarthenshire Council urged to say to extending Glan Lash (again)
Carmarthenshire councillors said no to extending Glan Lash coal mine. But now the same company has applied to extract coal from the site again.
We urge Coal Authority - act on enforcement order
Friends of the Earth has written to the Coal Authority, welcoming their enforcement order against the owner of Ffos y Fran, an open cast mine near Merthyr Tydfil.