Residents say they already have issues with the abandoned mine and are wary of further development.

According to the company employed to treat the waste water at the abandoned mine, AMD Industries, up to 1 million gallons (3.8 million litres) of acid mine drainage flows into the abandoned mine each day.

Acid mine drainage forms when mines are not properly maintained and actively pumped free of water.

Residents fear the contaminated water will kill plants, animals and aquatic life, and could also enter the town’s drinking water systems.

Locals claim that adding more waste to the abandoned mine, will overwhelm the facility responsible for handling the drainage.

Nottingham residents also fear that the waste water would not reach the proposed treatment plant.

The allocated site is 6.4km away from the abandoned mine and residents fear the water will absorb into the earth before reaching the facility.

State representative Rick Saccone publicly opposed the project and wrote a letter to Ramaco in February mirroring the concerns of activists and his constituents, saying he feared the plan “opens up the doors for ground contamination and unsafe consequences on constituents”