SUEK was heavily criticised on environmental grounds by local residents in the Far East where the company wants to build a new coal terminal in the Vanino sea port to increase coal export to Asia. The last known protest rally happened in Khabarovsk city in June 2013.

SUEK's corporate social report from 2010, shows lack of progress in eliminating environmental hazards resulting from coal mining. The amount of land affected by coal mining (which needs to be cleaned and recovered) remains large. In 2008-2010 this size remained around 14,000 of hectares, with only 82 of hectares recovered in 2010. Water consumption increased through 2009-2010 up to 171.6 million cubic metres. Although SUEK implemented a project under the Kyoto protocol in 2009-2010 aimed at pollution reduction, its air pollution remains very strong. Available statistics from the corporation demonstrate that pollution grew 10% between 2008 and 2009, and then in 2010 dropped back to the 2008 level. In 2010, 174,180 tons of dangerous waste were released into the atmosphere (mostly climate damaging methane - 146,500 tons). On other waste, the company's performance statistics are even worse - it generated 191 million tons of various wastes in 2009, and 215 million tons produced in 2010.