Mining ponds of the Jos plateau
The young Jurassic granites of the Jos Plateau are not just physical attractions for environmental tourists, but it is the large number of tin and columbite mineral deposits that have given the locality global prominence in the past. These mineral deposits have provided work for European mining companies since the early 20th century. Mining activities declined on the plateau as a result of the discovery of oil in the Niger Delta, leading to something of an involuntary decision to lay the mines fallow.
At the exact locations of these mining sites, spectacular cone-shaped mounds of excavated overburden soils with a base radius of up to 30 m and rising to heights of approximately 15 m are visible. Usually many of these cones could be seen grouped together. On the sides are steep man-made depressions filled with still water that often make them look terrible. These depressions represent the locations where the mounds once stood.
Mining activities affected about a quarter of the communities in the state, especially in Jos-south, Barkin Ladi, Bokkos, Bassa, Riyom and Jos-east local government areas.
The great mining activities ended in the eighties. In some places time is wearing away the role of mining scars. Elsewhere, they are as prominent as ever, thus remaining vacant land occupying space that would have been put to lucrative use, especially in agricultural production. Also, mining ponds have become death traps where people often mysteriously die.
As the saying goes, behind any cloud there is a silver lining. After all, these mines are not all garbage. Our brethren, born long after mining activities have ended, often seek to know what these striking anomalies represent. As a result, some of these old mines were used as educational resource sites to teach children about mining and also to inform them about the mining history of their native lands. In Rayfield, a part of Jos, a mining pond was converted into a recreational facility, the Rayfield Resort, where people often go and have a good time, especially on holidays. As can be understood, Plateau State derives its name from the geographical nature of the terrain which is elevated and flat on top. Given the fact that it is located within the Savannah belt of vegetation, it is possible to see for miles, giving the Plateau the beauty for which it has been known. Where the mining sites are located, the red laterite of the mining waste contrasts with the background environment, making the landscape even more beautiful.
For those who worked in the mining companies, anything reminiscent of mining activities brings back fond memories of a time when they worked and were paid in coins that had integrity, a period during which employers provided full-powered descent accommodation. constant electricity and water, not to mention transportation and training of labor. The local communities never experienced hopelessness and despair, quite the opposite.
In view of the fact that hundreds of new mining licenses were issued in 2007, it is certain that heaps of mining waste will resurface, if not on the Plateau then in other parts of Africa’s most populous nation.