Karabash - a demonstration of how a person can mutilate nature

I think everyone has heard about Karabash. Usually it is mentioned in the context of any talk about the environment. Karabash is famous for having once been on the lists of the dirtiest cities in Russia or even the world. Now this place is a demonstration of how a person can mutilate nature.

Karabash is a city in the Chelyabinsk region with a population of 15,000 people. Karabash arose in 1822 after the discovery of gold placers at the site of an ancient Tatar settlement. The name Karabash in Tatar means "black head". At the beginning of the 20th century, copper was mined in Karabash. After several decades of copper mining and smelting, the city became a zone of environmental emergency. Initially, the plant did not have sewage treatment plants - no one thought about ecology in the days of the USSR.

For 100 years, the plant managed to burn out and slurry a huge area around it. During the year of operation, the plant throws out into the atmosphere more than 180 tons of gases that fall in the form of acid rain into the surrounding area.

After processing the rock, thousands of tons of sludge remain. He is dumped near the factory. As a result, such heaps are formed.

Copper ore deposits were discovered in the valley in the 19th century, and in 1837 the first smelter was built, which lasted five years. The old copper plant was the second such plant in the valley and was built in 1907. This plant worked for three years. In 1910, in the valley near Mount Karabash, a new smelter was launched, which is still operating. Five years after the opening, the plant produced a third of all Russian copper.