Swedish miner begins massive relocation of whole city

The entire Swedish city of Kiruna has begun a long-planned and quite challenging relocation to an area about 3km east (2miles) after ground fissures created by iron ore mining activity weakened the ground beneath it.

The decision, however, didn’t take any local by surprise. In fact, mining company Luossavaara-Kiirunavaara AB (LKAB) has planned moving the nearly 18,000 residents of Kiruna and all of the city’s buildings since 2004.

Map based on Google maps.

Over the next two decades, about 3,000 apartments and houses, several hotels, and 2.2 million square feet of office, school and health-care space will relocate east.

While some residents of what is Sweden's most northern town have moved already, the first of the town’s historic buildings was hoisted up on a truck Wednesday and transported to its new location, Radio Sweden reported.

Via @eyeonthearctic

State-owned LKAB, which is Kiruna's largest employer, has been digging deeper for ore in the area, which has increased the risk of Kiruna suddenly sinking into a hole.

The company had alerted authorities that mining more iron ore would mean further excavation, which —in turn— would destabilize the city's centre. But instead od closing the mine, the municipality decided to relocate its people.

LKAB is paying for a large proportion of the transformation, though it has said it is impossible to accurately ascertain the cost of the move.

Here's how the move is going so far:

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from MINING.com http://ift.tt/2qkgwg8