Copper is a very long-term business and most of the large-scale copper mines of the 20th century are still in operation. But copper has an even longer history. Hereby an overview of rehabilitated copper mines, sometimes from a distant past. The first 12 cases come from reference [1], and cases 13-14 can be found in [2]. From bullet 16 onwards, we list recent examples of restoration efforts from ICA members.
- UK: Parys Mountain, Anglessey - an area where copper was mined since the Roman era, and which was the largest copper mine in the world in the 18th century. Now a hiking area. [1 - p45] In the laboratory, metal-tolerant plant species have been developed that can be used in restoration projects. [1 - p71]
- Chile: Sewell - copper mining town built high up in the Andes in the early 20th century, now a Unesco World Heritage Site. [1 - p50]
- UK: Cornwall - mining region which supplied half of the world's copper and tin in the 19th century, now its 56 sites classified as Unesco World Heritage. [1 - p53]
- US: Bingham - sustainable housing, LEED certified, in the buffer zone.
- Germany: Braubach - a 14th century copper & silver mine transformed into a battery recycling plant. [1 - p58]
- Australia: Woodlawn - bioreactor landfill to process biological waste. [1 - p63]
- UK: Gwennap Pit - mining subsidence converted into an amfitheatre, used as a place of worship. [1 - p66]
- Canada: Flin Flon - plant-based biopharmaceutical production in an underground copper & zinc mine. [1 - p79]
- Finland: Pyhasalmi - sauna at 1,440 m depth in an underground copper & zinc mine. [1 - p79]. Also home to the Callio project - https://callio.info/ and https://calliolab.com/
- Italy: Valpelline - cheese production in an old copper mine. [1 - p84]
- Sweden: Stekenjokk - reindeer breeding at an old copper, zinc and silver mine. [1 - p100]
- Tasmania: Mount Lyell - moonscape hiking area. [1 - p105]
- US: Flambeau mine - from copper mine to nature trail. [2 - p15]
- Canada: Vancouver Island - underwater tailings placement for a copper mine. [2 - p16]
- US: Bisbee - from mining camp to quirky tourist destination - https://www.azfamily.com/2022/06/09/bisbee-queen-copper-camps/
- Sweden: restoring open pit mines - http://www.boliden.com/Sustainability/Case-studies/Gillervattnet-reclamation-project/
- US: creating nature reserves - http://www.kennecott.com/inland-sea-shorebird-reserve
- Mongolia: protecting the desert - http://www.nature.org/about-us/working-with-companies/companies-we-work-with/rio-tinto-case-study.xml
- Poland: restoring water quality and woodland - https://kghm.com/en/sustainable-development/environment/mine-reclamation
- US:Former mining site becomes regional park in Utah - https://www.mining.com/former-mining-site-becomes-regional-park-in-utah/
References
[1] Georgina Pearman, 101 Things to do with a Hole in the Ground, Post Mining Alliance, 2009
[2] Mary Poulton, University of Arizona, 102 Things to do with a Hole in the Ground, https://www.nationalacademies.org/event/04-10-2017/docs/DB3695EDFD316F1BB348A6E54E7BA99BC3897B397814 (visited February 9, 2022)
[3] Copper Alliance, Sustainable Mining With A Long-Term Vision, https://copperalliance.org/resource/sustainable-mining-with-a-long-term-vision/ (accessed March 16, 2022)
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Last update: September 4, 2023
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