136 places missing and the land is still moving

Just came back from an awesome trip to eastern Germany. The Lausitz region on the German-Polish border is full of stories. Ever since 1924 up to 136 villages and towns have been demolished to make way for brown coal quarries. It started in the Third Reich, went on in communist times and is expected to continue to at least 2030.

The only difference is: in the former GDR you got a notice on your frontdoor saying you have to be out by Monday next. Now, Vattenfall - the giant Swedish energy producer - compensates people for the loss of their homes. Like the town of Horno that fought 30 years against its obliteration from the Lausitz map. They lost. Then they could rebuild their village in the same manner some 20 miles further on, on the outskirts of the town of Forst. What arose there is Neu Horno (new Horno). It is so perfect it looks like the towns my daughter used to construct in The Sims computer game.

At the same time Vattenfall quarries the land for brown coal, creating lunar landscapes everywhere. When the mining stops, these giant craters get turned into articifical lakes for recreation. There will be 23 of them, connected thru canals.

The landscape changes all the time and towns and villages will keep disappearing. It is a difficult thing for the inhabitants: they are economically dependent on an employer who pays for their salaries and demolishes their houses at the same time.