Romanian government delegation finds out about remediation of lignite mining sites in Germany's new federal states
A Romanian government delegation headed by Silviu Stoica, State Secretary in the Romanian Ministry of the Environment, and his counterpart from the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Viorel Palasca, visited Germany's Federal Environment Ministry today to learn more about the remediation of former mining sites. The remediation of former lignite mining areas in Germany's new federal states was a particular focus of interest. "The revitalisation of former lignite mining sites is one of the success stories of German reunification and is an impressive example of cooperation between the Federal Government and the lignite-mining states in Eastern Germany", said Astrid Klug, Parliamentary State Secretary in the Federal Environment Ministry.
The visit by the Romanian delegation offers an opportunity to pass on the wealth of experience gained by Germany in the remediation and recultivation of areas whose landscapes had been devastated by open-cast and underground mining. "The landscape restructuring in Lausitz and the Central German coal-mining states, and the technical knowledge and planning skills which have developed as part of this process, are unique and are rightly being recognised internationally. The need for investment in environmental and remediation technologies, as in Romania, offers major opportunities for German companies as well", said Astrid Klug.
At Europe's largest landscape remediation site – the abandoned lignite mining areas of the former GDR – new and attractive lake landscapes are now being created. "The people in these regions are benefiting from this investment, which offers an entirely new quality of life and new economic opportunities", Klug emphasised. In total, Germany's Federal Government and federal states have pumped almost eight billion euros into the remediation of lignite mining sites since 1990.