Thesis Project Presentation II – Repurposing Exhausted Industrial Mining Sites

By Ryan Kinports

Large scale mining is an ever growing part of modern society. When I began looking for a topic I started with what I thought would be important issues in the future more than the present.

Core Concepts:
Contaminated Land:

The earth is an expansive environment capable of supporting many more humans than it currently holds. Our problem is that industrial concerns have created situations where it is most favorable for a few to dispose of toxins in an irresponsible way. To provide a solution for humanity the best option to actively engage the problem and find a method to filter, contain, and/or remove the pollutants.
Sunk Labor:

This refers to the physical energy expended in the site since it opened in 1906. While this energy’s primary purpose was to facilitate precious metal extraction and thus has not been wasted energy it has left an enormous scar in the land. Finding a secondary use to further justify millions of man hours would be favorable.
Reliance on Motor Vehicles:

Urban sprawl is one of the more insidious problems with city planning. An appropriate way to prevent this issue is to insure that cars are totally unneeded. By creating a living area where all necessities are accessible by foot there would be a significant reduction in pollution, stress, and wasted time.
Energy Efficiency:

The opportunities for energy savings that a condensed living area presents are significant. Typically the sprawl and complexity of a city create a great deal of waste.

Climate Regulation: 

Temperature changes create a need for varied types of clothing, building insulation, road salt, and all manner of seasonal equipment. In order to reduce the need for such a variety of goods a sealed environment must be created.

                                                    

 All images courtesy Ryan Kinports.