Initial situation

Thermal lignite-upgrading processes to produce solid, liquid and gaseous energy carriers such as coke, oil, and gas at the Schwarze Pumpe site also resulted in high-caloric value gasification and coking by-products predominantly tar sludge, tar-coal and tar-ash mixtures which were temporarily stored in tar deposition basins.
The closure of the upgrading plants meant that the tar precipitation and coal sludge basins became redundant.

Approach

The implementation of the rehabilitation concept required consideration of which of two alternatives complete, extensive rehabilitation and renaturation, or an alternative rehabilitation method would be implemented. In view of the expense of the deep rubble and debris removal that full rehabilitation would have entailed, the re-use oriented rehabilation option was chosen. The remaining contents of the eight tar precipitation and coal sludge basins was removed. The basins overall 200 metres long, 50 metres wide and 12 metres deep were refilled with a mixture of broken concrete and soil.
They were then surfaced with a layer of asphalt concrete.

Result

Following completion between 2003 and 2006 the local conditions have permitted the use of the site as a transhipment area and as a temporary industrial equipment storage area.
The implementation of this rehabilitation type opened up a wide range of options for considerable savings.