Since more than 200 years the urban history of Bochum is inseparable connected to mining. Coal mining shaped the entire region, its environment and the people. Since the active hard coal mining was officially ended in 2018, identification with the past as well as knowledge of raw material mining have been increasingly lost in society – but its influence will still be visible in the long term, says Prof. Dr. Tobias Rudolph from the Research Center of Post-Mining: “The challenges mining leaves behind, will occupy many generations to come. Post-mining is therefore an important task for the future. For preserving and passing on the knowledge, the THGA has now concluded a special cooperation with the VHS Bochum (adult education center). Some joint course offers in the topics post-mining, structural change and geomonitoring are already specifically planned.
The experts at the Research Center of Post-Mining are dedicated to these topics. “We investigate not only the challenges, but also the chances the era after a mining period offers”, explains Prof. Rudolph. We want to transfer our findings to the Bochum residents as clearly and understandable as possible.”
In the coming fall semester of the VHS, the online event "Once mining, always mining - Future Ruhr area!" (17.11.) provides an overview of mining, post-mining and the complex interrelationships between the surface and the subsurface. A joint visit to the German Mining Museum in Bochum is also planned: “Bochum from below” (02.12.) makes post-mining understandable in the demonstration mine of the museum.
Contract agreement via video conference (from left to right): VHS director Helle Timmermann, THGA president Prof. Dr. Jürgen Kretschmann and Prof. Dr. Tobias Rudolph are looking forward to joint courses on post-mining. ©THGA
In February 2022, the participants can look forward to their own flight lesson and discover the topic of geomonitoring. At the campus of THGA University they can control small drones on their own. "We also use such drones to monitor environmental changes caused by mining", explains Prof. Rudolph. With the help of the high-resolution images, the scientists can f. e. track down vegetation defects or ground movements from the air. In May 2022, a bicycle tour on the traces of post-mining through the Bochum urban area is planned: from old water drainage adits at the Ruhr valley over reused areas of collieries to discharge points for mine water.
“The new cooperation between the THGA University and the VHS fits in very well with the existing program of the "Nature|Environment", especially in the focus area "Geology", says Katja Holzmüller, head of department at the VHS. It complements our diverse range of excursions with the component of post-mining, which plays such an important role in our region and especially in Bochum. First-hand information, conveyed in a lively manner and directly on site – this is how education is fun!
The autumn semester program will be published on August 10, 2021 both in print and online: www.vhs-bochum.de. Then you can register for all courses and events there or by calling 0234-910-1555 at the VHS. At the moment, only online events are allowed at the VHS. You can also find an overview of the current offer at http://www.vhs-bochum.de.
In post-mining research, also drones are increasingly being used, which the participants of the VHS course can try out for themselves.
©THGA
“The transfer of science to civil society is one of the central tasks of our university”, says THGA President Prof. Dr. Jürgen Kretschmann. “We are therefore very pleased about the cooperation with the VHS, which has always made suitable course offers for people interested in education. With our post-mining and geomonitoring projects, we are expanding the range of topics. This means that everyone involved benefits - and especially the citizens of Bochum. ”
Editors: Carmen Tomlik
EN 
DE