RAG Montan Immobilien GmbH, Essen/Germany, is conducting reclamation work on the site of the former Luisenthal mine on behalf of RAG Aktiengesellschaft. In the presence of representatives from politics and the town council, as well as a large crowd of residents, further demolition work officially got under way on 15th November 2018 (Figure 1).
In collaboration with the town of Völklingen, RAG Montan Immobilien and the state, an urban development concept was devised in 2015 for the Luisenthal district, including the former mining site. This concept was named “New Luisenthal”. In addition to a plethora of urban planning measures for redeveloping the old centre of Luisenthal, it comprises a comprehensive set of measures that will be implemented by RAG Montan Immobilien to restore the site of the former mine’s surface facility and spoil tip and transform it for future use. “We are sticking to the concept that we developed together,” says Markus Masuth, Chair of the Executive Board at RAG Montan Immobilien. The elevated waste rock hopper and raw coal bunker are to be demolished. RAG Montan Immobilien will restore the land in the mine’s surface facility, clear it of all residual contaminants and prepare it for future use with the aim, he says, of allowing monitoring of the Luisenthal surface facility and spoil tip by mining authorities to cease at the earliest possible juncture.
“However, we cannot implement the overarching “New Luisenthal” concept alone. This requires a joint effort by the state, local authority and company,” stresses Masuth. “But we will do what we can as a company and what is economically viable.” RAG Montan Immobilien’s involvement focusses on the surface facility and spoil tip. Plans are already afoot for reclaiming the spoil tip, which will later be used for new, green purposes.
Besides the surface facility and spoil tip, the “New Luisenthal” concept encompasses a number of other important elements, which include renovating and transforming the station, building new facilities to make the site easily accessible by foot and by bicycle, enlarging the underpass in Altenkesseler Straße as an external access point, and redeveloping the old centre of Luisenthal. “All these measures are necessary to ensure that substantial progress is made in Luisenthal. Redeveloping the mining site alone is not sufficient to achieve this. The entire district must be stabilised and reactivated,” affirms Rudolf Krumm, authorised representative of RAG Montan Immobilien. “All successful structural change projects require a joint effort by the state, local authority and company. I hope that this joint effort can continue throughout the project’s implementation.”
The concrete elements that are left over from the demolition of RAG Aktiengesellschaft’s old administrative building in Saarbrücken and are now being stored at the mining site are to be removed from the site as soon as possible. “We now have the final authorisation that we need,” says Krumm. Preparations are now being made for the concrete’s removal to the Ludweiler spoil tip. The material will then be broken up and incorporated there. The Ludweiler council has already approved this measure. (RAG MI/Si.)
