Disused mining area on Svalbard removed and left to nature

– It is no longer enough to protect nature, we must also restore damaged nature. This project gives us very valuable experience about nature restoration and sets the ambitions when we are now going to start restoring nature in several places in Norway, says Climate and Environment Minister Andreas Bjelland Eriksen in a press release.

There has been coal production in Sveagruven since 1916. In March 2020, the mine closed for good, although the last coal came out of the mine in 2016. In recent years, work has been done to restore the natural area and remove traces of the mine.

Now there are only a few remaining cultural monuments that indicate that there has been a mining community in Svea. Airport, port, roads and buildings have been removed.

– When we manage to restore an old mining town back to nature in the Arctic, with the logistical challenges that are there, we can do it on the mainland too. This is important knowledge to include in connection with the Nature Report that will be submitted this autumn, says Bjelland Eriksen.

The restorations of Svea and Lunckefjell were originally estimated to cost a total of NOK 2.5 billion. However, the total cost ended up at NOK 1.6 billion, i.e. NOK 900 million under budget. The project was also completed one year ahead of schedule.