Waste Heaps in Germany: Die Halden in Deutschland, 6 814 million m³

Abstract

Waste Heaps in Germany (Die Halden in Deutschland) (2025) is an artwork that explores the future of waste and the topography created by mining activities. It involves identifying all the industrially deposited waste dumps throughout Germany in order to estimate the total volume of terrain that they form. Displayed as a 17-meter-long wall text at the Art Museum Moritzburg Halle (Saale), the work presents a calculation of the vast volume of waste generated by overburden rock over the last 175 years of German mining, raising questions about the future potential of recently formed terrain.

Recognizing that the total extension of waste ground remains unknown, and acknowledging the need for information to plan new uses, a collaboration between art and science was established. The reviews, data collection, and calculations were conducted by RBFK (Regional Society for Education, Research and Competence Development) on behalf of artist Lara Almarcegui. The multidisciplinary team included Andreas Kamradt, an economic geologist familiar with the Mansfeld mining district — an area with thousands of waste heaps resulting from copper mining. To support investigations into new applications, geologists analyzed the mineral constituents of the heaps to explore the potential of the former mining region. For the artwork production, volumetric data were requested from relevant State Offices and mining authorities. To calculate unavailable dump volume data, more hands-on calculations using 3D digital elevation models were necessary — as was the case for the Ruhr area, one of Europe’s largest former mining regions.