Europe has a long mining history dating back to the Bronze Age (3300 – 1200 BC). Early mining activity was a carried out in a primitive manner and only relatively high grade mineralization was worked. Many developments have taken place since then up to the present day. In addition, the range of commodities mined has greatly expanded over this time period and include ornamental stone, industrial minerals, fuel minerals as well as metal mines. Several of these sites have had over 1,000 years of continuous mining activity while others measure their life in decades or less. The mining activity has altered the landscape and many mining regions have a unique environment and built heritage. This Task aims to document those mining areas which have developed tourist attractions or amenities following the closure of the mines, in partner countries. Information has be collected which will provide a brief overview of the mine – commodities worked, period of operation, type of mining, mining activities that were carried out at the site, the current condition of the site including any remediation, built heritage, current attractions at the site (preserved built heritage, interpretative centre, walks, etc.) and the management of the site.

Europe is largely dependent on raw materials imports and has to supply its needs, especially of critical raw materials, from international sources. Nevertheless, Europe also has a long lasting mining history and some deposits have been mined continuously even for hundreds of years. FRAME WP7 investigates traditional mining sites and their raw material potential. In addition to the main commodities of these historic deposits, the project focuses on strategic raw materials (SRM) such as e.g. high-tech metals extracted as by-products and critical raw materials of the EU actual list. These raw materials might be contained in the ore or in residues from the nowadays abandoned mining and beneficiation activities. The dataset contains examples of historic mines that might have a potential for CRM. Related case studies give detailed information on the sites. Please note: the dataset does not reflect a pan-European assessment, but examples and case studies.