Land Reclamation Epic Begins
The Ffos-y-fran Land Reclamation Scheme in Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales, one of the largest projects of its kind in Europe, will see more than 400ha of derelict land being restored and the opencast extraction of almost 11 million tonnes of coal over the next 17 years
After nearly two decades of local community unrest and legal wrangling in the courts, work has finally begun to reclaim land at Ffos-y-fran on the eastern outskirts of Merthyr Tydfil. The long-awaited project represents the third and final phase of the East Merthyr Land Reclamation Scheme, where phases one and two have been successfully completed with the restoration of around 106ha of derelict land now being used for housing, light industry and recreation.
Expected to take 17 years to complete, phase three of the Ffos-y-fran project will remove all the iron ore and coal workings from the site, and progressively restore 1,000 acres (406ha) of dilapidated land to mainly agricultural and leisure use.
Opencast coal
At the same time, opencast methods will be used to recover around 10.8 million tonnes of Welsh dry steam coal, at a rate of 750,000 tonnes to 1 million tonnes a year, making Ffos-y-fran one of the largest surface mining schemes in Europe.
As environmental issues, such as CO2 emissions and traffic congestion, become increasingly important, much of this coal will be transported by rail to Aberthaw Power Station, near Cardiff, which supplies 42% of South Wales’ electricity. Developers Miller Argent – a joint venture between housebuilders Miller Group, property developers Argent, and landowners Bernard Llewellyn – say the rail connection, operated by EWS, will save around 42 million HGV miles.
Ultimately, the Ffos-y-fran scheme will provide a significant boost to the local economy with the creation of 600 new jobs – 200 directly and around 400 indirectly – with positions ranging from plant drivers and environmental liaison officers to site engineers and archaeologists. So far there are around 100 new employees on site, 80 of whom are from the local area.
With a national shortage of skilled miners on the horizon, Miller Argent have introduced apprenticeships and training programmes on the project to give young people the opportunity to pursue careers in the mining sector. CoalPro has recently warned that the industry is facing a major challenge to replace an ageing workforce, and to overcome this looming skills crisis, coal producers should think about nurturing the next generation of miners.
The scheme will also contribute to the continued vitality of the Welsh coal industry and that of Aberthaw Power Station, thus providing security for over 2,350 jobs. Looking at the wider picture, the economic importance of extracting coal at Ffos-y-fran is that the revenue generated will mean the derelict land to the east of Methyr Tydfil will be restored at no cost to the public purse. In addition, Miller Argent will create a community benefit fund of around £6 million for local projects.
Rising to the challenge
To meet the demands of a land-reclamation scheme of this scale, the developers have invested heavily in plant and equipment and associated support services. The lucrative £65 million contract with Finning UK is believed to be the largest single-site plant and service deal ever to be signed in Britain.
The Miller Argent fleet comprises: 28 Caterpillar 777F off-highway trucks; three D9T and one D10T track-type tractors; three 16M motor-graders; four 324DL hydraulic excavators; two 325DL hydraulic excavators; a 330DL hydraulic excavator; a 980H wheel loader; a 966H wheel loader; two 824H wheeled dozers, two 773 water bowsers; and a 725 fuel bowser.
Finning’s maintenance and product support services also played a key part in winning the contract. At Ffos-y-fran, the company has built three on-site service bays, an oil storage facility and deployed a full-time team, including two service engineers, a contract co-ordinator and a contract manager. Furthermore, Finning have expanded local service support facilities in Llantrisant, Glamorgan.
Commenting on the deal with Finning and Caterpillar, James Poyner, one of the directors at Miller Argent, said: ‘When you are moving up to 360 million tonnes of overburden, developing the right equipment strategy is all about the cost per tonne and productivity, particularly when you are running double shifts.
‘The reason we awarded the contract to Finning and Caterpillar was the approach they took to the challenges we laid out in front of them. They worked in partnership with us to develop the right solution by exploring all possibilities and fleet mixes, and sharing information about their fleet production and cost software, so that we could make an informed choice. They were also able to commit to a strict service level agreement and prove they had the expertise and investment plans to fulfil their commitment.’
Komatsu, meanwhile, overcame stiff competition to win a contract, worth over £4.5 million, to supply three of their latest PC3000 Super Shovels to Miller Argent from UK subsidiary KMG Warrington. The machines, two of which are in backhoe configuration and the other being a front shovel, have 15m3 buckets and are powered by 940kW Komatsu diesel engines.
At the Ffos-y-fran press launch last November, Miller Argent director Stephen Tillman said Finning and Komatsu have the right knowledge, innovation and experience to deliver the restoration objectives. The company has found great success working in partnerships and integrated teamwork, and the scheme is expected to demonstrate this ethos.
Opencast working methodology
Work on phase three began in June 2007 with the site securely fenced and water-treatment areas and access points established. The PC3000 shovels were then used to strip the areas containing topsoil and subsoil followed by loading the 777F dumptrucks, assisted by low-ground-pressure Caterpillar dozers.
Transported to stockpile dumps for use in the final restoration work, the soils will act as acoustic barriers and will be grassed over for protection, as well as to provide a visual benefit. Once the soils are stored in the temporary dumps, the excavation of the material above and between the coal seams can begin.
As the overburden is removed by the Komatsu shovels, coal is extracted from seams ranging from 250mm to 1.0m in thickness, using the Caterpillar hydraulic excavators (fitted with coal shovels). The coal is then loaded on to the 777F trucks and transported to the coal disposal point at Cwmbargoed.
During the project, Miller Argent say more than 40,000,000m3 of overburden and coal will be removed and transported to various tipping stations around the site. Twenty-six 777F dumptrucks will operate six days a week, with two units used as back up for routine maintenance.
On such an extensive site, dust control measures are paramount. Before leaving the site, trucks will pass through a wheel wash, while dust suppression units will spray water on all haul roads. Once the coal is unloaded at the disposal point, it will then be blended and dispatched in railway wagons for transportation to Aberthaw.
Final restoration work
The first major excavation is the creation of a ‘box cut’ (see fig. 1); this provides enough space for miners to operate equipment safely and efficiently. The overburden from the box cut is taken to a temporary holding dump above ground, where it is grassed and maintained until the material is replaced in the final void, which effectively completes the restoration works.
After completion of the box cut, all subsequent excavation is performed in successive strips and the excavated material from these strips is progressively placed behind the current workings, into the previously worked-out voids. The system – described by Miller Argent as a ‘wave like’ process – allows restoration of the land behind to be carried out progressively as the works continue.
The final void is filled using the overburden in the temporary dump. Soils re-spread over the restored overburden and completed areas of reclamation will be subjected to a five-year period of aftercare, when the land undergoes an agreed programme of rehabilitation.
Environment
One of the biggest challenges for the opencast coal mining industry is to tackle environmental issues through sustainable development. Miller Argent had to take into account the protection of wildlife and nature conservation within the third-phase boundary, developing a plan that had to be the most environmentally acceptable proposal for completing the local council’s reclamation objectives at East Merthyr.
‘A total of 59 planning conditions had to be met,’ explained Mr Tillman. ‘The scheme was environmentally assessed on issues ranging from landscape, waste management and air quality, through to ecology, visual impact and blasting.’
Ffos-f-fran contains a large number of rare habitats in the region, so it is vitally important for the developers to foster biodiversity and promote habitat creation for the benefit of the environment. Initiatives being undertaken include creating and enhancing bat roosts, badger setts, amphibian habitats, hedgerows, woodlands and water features.
Another sensitive issue is protecting the local heritage interests of the site. Identified in the restoration strategy are important archaeological features, including a wooden aqueduct over a disused railway line (now a listed building) and a recently discovered Iron Age settlement.
Not everyone, however, is fully behind the Ffos-y-fran project, which received final approval in November 2006 after the Welsh Assembly won in the House of Lords (the High Court had overturned the original planning approval in December 2005). The scheme has been the subject of years of campaigning, as some local residents are worried about the impact of noise and dust pollution caused by the opencast operation.
Operating to the highest working standards
Miller Argent have undertaken extensive site investigations to ensure work on the final phase of the Ffos-y-fran scheme is carried out in the most efficient and environmentally considerate manner. A management team has been put in place to supervise the operation and ensure compliance with environmental and planning requirements.
‘We have gone beyond what is required under the planning application procedure in preparing information to explain our plan and deal with any public concern,’ said Mr Poyner. ‘We have produced community flyers and displays to help inform the local residents affected by the restoration and its likely impacts.’
‘There were no major problems during the first two phases of the East Merthyr Reclamation Scheme, and that reclamation has been a great success for the local community.’
Fundamentally, the operation to restore the Ffos-y-fran site demonstrates there is a growing shift in attitudes to opencast coal mining. Over the years, British coal suppliers have not been able to optimize the use of opencast sites due to planning constraints in MPG3, the Government’s planning guidance for surface mine applications.
However, the Ffos-y-fran Land Reclamation Scheme proves indigenous coal still has a big future and, perhaps more importantly, it could be the catalyst for change in government opinion and planning policy, bringing a new coal age back to Britain.
