Inundated Potash Mine Volkenroda: Mine Submerged by Floodwaters - Abandoned Kali Mine in Volkenroda experiences flooding incident
The flooding of the dormant potash mine in Volkenroda, Thuringia, which ceased operations in the early 1990s, is expected to be completed in 2026. The German Press Agency reported this fact following a request to the Lausitzer and Mitteldeutsche Bergbau-Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH (LMBV), the company responsible for the safe sealing of specific former potash mining areas in Thuringia.
Two abandoned potash mines—one in Bischofferode, Eichsfeld district, and another in Volkenroda, Unstrut-Hainich district—are being filled with saturated salt solution, an action designed to permanently seal them. The tailings, wastewater produced during the extraction of potash salts, are being used for this procedure.
Volkenroda, operational until 1991, is recognized as northern Thuringia's deepest potash mine, with shafts reaching approximately 1,000 meters below ground. Bischofferode, despite protests from miners and a prolonged hunger strike in 1993, was shut down.
Since 2024, the underground cavities in Volkenroda/Pöthen have been gradually filled with tailings water on-site, according to the LMBV. In anticipation of the flooding's completion in 2026, there has been extensive renovation and safety work conducted on the Urbach and Pöthen drillings, the five-kilometer-long flooding pipeline, and the collection basin in Menteroda.
The LMBV Kali, Spat, Erz region in Thuringia, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony continues to have numerous tasks, according to their own statements. These include the execution of planned sealing and remediation projects, as well as the aftercare phase, which began for most of the projects and includes seismic and geotechnical monitoring.
Potash mining has historical significance in Germany, particularly in the regions of Thuringia and Saxony. The LMBV oversees the management and restoration of abandoned mining sites, with a focus on safety, environmental protection, and rehabilitation. The flooding of abandoned mines helps stabilize the ground, prevent subsidence, and restore groundwater balance. The consequences of flooding, including potential impacts on the environment, economy, safety, and the possibility for future reuse, should be carefully considered.
- Despite the expected completion of the flooding of the Volkenroda potash mine in 2026, the LMBV Kali, Spat, Erz region in Thuringia, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony has numerous tasks related to vocational training, environmental science, and finance, including the execution of sealing and remediation projects, the aftercare phase, and the monitoring of potential impacts on the environment, economy, safety, and the possibility for future reuse.
- The flooding of abandoned potash mines, such as Volkenroda and Bischofferode, designed to permanently seal them, also serves an important role in scientific research, especially in the field of climate-change and energy, as the consequences of flooding can provide valuable insights into ground stabilization, preventing subsidence, and restoring groundwater balance.
- The LMBV, responsible for the safe sealing of specific former potash mining areas in Thuringia, is committed to vocational training and industry, ensuring the safety and environmental protection of abandoned mining sites, as well as their rehabilitation, a critical aspect of Germany's historical potash mining regions.
