A preliminary report from the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and hazardous substances (2017)  says there should be an independent investigation into the potential health impacts of the Ffos-y-Fran site. This follows a long campaign by nearby residents and supporting EJOs and other organizations. Even miners (who were active in the famous coal miners’ strike in the UK in 1985) have turned against open cast mining because it provides very few jobs and pollutes the communities.

 Coal dust, air pollution and noise endanger local health particularly of children and elderly people. This UN report will urge an investigation into the potential health impacts of this UK's largest opencast coalmine. The report will be delivered in September 2017 in Geneva to the Human Rights Council. “Residents living alongside Ffos-y-Fran near Merthyr Tydfil have led a long campaign, alleging that they are affected by air and noise pollution. The UN's special rapporteur on hazardous substances and wastes Baskut Tuncak met campaigners in Merthyr Tydfil as part of an official visit to the UK in January 2017. He has said that the case raised "many concerns" about the UK's approach to regulation. His role is to assess and advise governments about their efforts to protect the human rights of communities at risk of pollution, such as the rights to life, health and adequate housing. In an interview with BBC Wales, he said the plight of the community surrounding Ffos-y-Fran was "top of the list" in terms of the "many pressing issues" he had encountered. The first observation that came to mind was how incredibly close this community is to a massive open pit coalmine, Mr Tuncak said.” "I heard allegations of very high rates of childhood asthma and cancer clusters within the community. But despite those allegations I didn't hear any evidence of a strong intervention by the government to investigate or any strong reaction by the companies concerned to investigate themselves." [2]. Work to reclaim 11 million tonnes of coal over the course of 17 years had started at the Ffos-y-Fran site in 2007, despite numerous court battles, a public inquiry, petitions and protests. The closest houses are less than 40m  away from the site. Residents were told that modern mining methods would mean they would not be affected by pollution, while the operation would restore 1,000 acres of land which was once riddled with old mine shafts and was used to dump spoil. In the meantime, the Welsh Government has imposed a 500m buffer-zone between any new opencast mines in Wales and the communities around them but this doesn't apply retrospectively to Ffos-y- Fran.

There have also been further direct action non violent tactics deployed in 2017, followed by heavy fines against the activists who, in a small group, stopped transport and sabotaged installations.  [3] [6]     

In 2017, the company announces an extension in Nant Llesg: "We are a mining and resources company that has been responsibly operating “The Ffos-y-fran Land Reclamation Scheme” in the Merthyr Tydfil Area since 2007. Alongside mining quality coal, we are restoring land that was once derelict, unstable and unsightly, to create a much improved environment which will benefit local people, hill farming and wildlife. We have now submitted a planning proposal for a second project incorporating surface mining and land remediation to Caerphilly County Borough Council. The proposed site is called Nant Llesg, located at the Heads of the Valley between Merthyr and Rhymney." On the 5th of August 2015, local campaigners and climate change activists tought they had stopped this new coal mine, when Caerphilly Councillors refused Miller Argent’s application to mine Nant Llesg. [5]

"The Miller Group has an annual turnover in excess of 1.2 billion pounds and has net assets in excess of 250 million pounds" [7]. The investment in the so-called reclamation and coal mining operation at Ffos-y-Fran since 2007 to 2017 (with 5 million tons of coal output) must be of the order of USD one hunded million.