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My Coal Childhood: Lessons From Germany's Mine Pit Lakes
Niepraschk, Anica
http://www.counterpunch.org/2017/08/02/my-coal-childhood-lessons-from-germanys-mine-pit-lakes/Date Written: 2017-08-02 Publisher: Counterpunch Year Published: 2017 Resource Type: Article Cx Number: CX21152 A personal account of living near a coal mine in the Lausitz region of Germany, where extensive mining has severely damaged the environment and current 'solutions' are creating even further challenges. Abstract: -- Excerpt: My family lives in the Lausitz region of Germany, once home to 30 brown coal mines. Situated between Berlin and Dresden, the region has been shaped by this industry for over 100 years. It was the German Democratic Republic's energy powerhouse – its Latrobe Valley – with coal mining the largest source of jobs. That changed with Germany's reunification, when the economy restructured to a market approach and most of the mines were closed. The only major industry was gone, leaving the countryside punctured with massive holes, and the community with big questions about how to make the region liveable again. Subject Headings |