Fachartikel

Trust is a valuable asset that must be built and maintained in scientific and technical projects. Especially in projects of the mining life cycle, which are due to the change of the social perception towards a circular value chain, trust is under special observation and has to be built up actively. The difficulties here lie in the transfer of the ...

After the end of lignite mining in the Rhenish mining area, the remaining volume of the three existing opencast mines will be filled with water. The creation of opencast mining lakes on a scale that has not yet been achieved anywhere in the world represents a complex task for the mining company and the responsible authorities. The authorisation and supervisory ...

Under the motto “Rethinking rehabilitation mining – Innovative approaches on the road to sustainability”, the Wismut GmbH, Chemnitz/Germany, the Association of Mining, Geology and Environment (VBGU), Berlin/Germany, and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Vienna/Austria, organized the 5th International Mining Symposium WISSYM 2023 from 25th to 28th September 2023. In Dresden/Germany, 200 participants from 15 countries discussed issues of innovation, ...

Awareness of raw materials and the acceptance of mining, remediation and industrial projects has become a key factor for society in Germany. For this reason, increased attention must be paid to this social acceptance. This concerns, among other things, the extraction of raw materials from near-surface raw materials, underground mining projects as well as remediation projects in old mines. Some ...

The raw materials sector has recently attracted a lot of attention. Geopolitical conflicts and other crises make supply chains more volatile, raising awareness amongst the wider public of how essential the raw material sector is. This is particularly true for mineral raw materials, as they are essential for the energy transition, climate protection and digitalization. The increased attention leads to ...

Sustainability requires concrete help from everyone to utilise existing resources in such a way that they are also available for future generations and the world remains liveable. There are differences in the way different age groups understand and implement the concept of sustainability. One study shows that Generation Z – born between 1995 and 2009 – has a greater interest ...

The phase-out of coal-fired power generation decided and pursued in Germany on the grounds of climate policy is proving to be increasingly questionable in terms of energy policy. It makes neither an internationally proportionate contribution to CO2 reduction nor an economically convincing contribution to climate-friendly electricity generation at national level. In any case, security of supply will continue to favour ...

Sustainability in the raw materials sector is no longer defined purely in ecological terms – securing the raw materials base has become an integral part of the concept of sustainability. This opens up opportunities for German companies, particularly in the area of raw material recovery and the development of processing capacities in the Global South. Raw material supply is once ...

The mining methods and equipment we deploy today are unlikely to be acceptable in the future. Stakeholders are rightly demanding that we must do better in the way we mine, while delivering safe, repeatable and consistent operational performance. As we strive to meet society’s demand for metals and minerals in a responsible and productive manner, we have the chance to ...

The town of Herzogenrath/Germany, north of Aachen, has a long mining history that stretches from the 12th century to the 1970s. Since then, the town, which is close to the Dutch border and the town of Kerkrade, has undergone an interesting structural change. Modern technology centres are now located where for decades people worked underground. Mines and tailings heaps have ...