The extraction of minerals and metals from the earth crust is as old as human mankind. The management of mine closure and post-closure is getting more and more attention because in Europe as well as worldwide many regions are affected by environmental residues such as tailings, waste dumps, subsidences, contaminated water which is the result of unsatisfactory environmental performance of the mining industry in the past. 

All European countreis are facing these problems and many of these countries are lacking funds and capacity in managing these old mine sites. This network of proposers with 74 scientists and practionizers from more than 60 organisations from 28 EU countries focus on legislation, governance and management of these legacies, financing as well as rehabilitation and monitoring techniques to improve implementation to minimize post-closure mining legacies. It will establish an European mining legacy database, compare present legal framework, governance structures and management approaches, provide input to mine authorities, regulators and financial institutions on a social balanced and environmental friendly management of mine legacies, harmonise best practices, standards and lessons learnt for a comprehensive and sustainable management of raw materials’ extraction legacies and disseminate the results to the public through an open access visualization platform. 

The network pools experts from currently separated fields (e.g. geologists, economists, engineers, environmental and social scientists, metallurgists, legal representatives, etc.) to consolidate knowledge and foster mutual exchange of knowledge between researchers.