Systematic development of environmental performance achieved by the consistent use of an environmental and energy management system in RWE Power AG's opencast mines

摘要

For many decades now, no other sector has left quite such a mark on the Rhineland as has the industrial-scale mining and use of lignite. The natural link with the deposit, along with the dynamic operating process, seriously interferes with nature and the environment. This process is characterized by the constant spatial development of the three opencast mines at Hambach, Garzweiler and Inden. This intervention has been altering the landscape in the triangle formed by the cities of Cologne, Aachen and Monchengladbach for decades (Figure 1).