Sierra Menera
Encyclopedia
Sierra Menera is a 31 km (19 mi) long mountain range in the southwestern end of the Iberian System
. Its highest point is the 1,601 m high summit known as Monte de San Ginés; another important peak is the 1591 m high Mojón Alto.
Administratively the Sierra Menera belongs to the Sierra de Albarracín
, Jiloca
and Comunidad de Teruel, comarca of Aragon, as well as to the Province of Guadalajara, Castile-La Mancha
in its western side.
There are aerogenerators on some of the range's ridges.
The main range is aligned in a NNW - SSE direction. It is not as high or conspicuous as other mountain ranges of the Iberian System. From the hydrographic point of view the Sierra Menera divides the Atlantic
from the Mediterranean
watershed
. The eastern rivulets are tributaries of the Jiloca River, the western of the Tagus
, and the northern have no exit, ending up in the Laguna de Gallocanta
basin.
in Spanish language
, for it has rich iron ore deposits that were exploited since ancient Celtiberian
, and later also during Roman times, well until the late 20th century.
A 200 km long railway line was built by the Compañía Minera de Sierra Menera S. A. in 1903 in order to bring the iron ore to the harbor of Sagunto
. This was the longest private company-owned railway line in Europe
. A blast furnace
facility also belonging to the company was also located in Sagunto, where a pelletizing
plant and a long jetty were built in the 1970s.
The Sierra Menera range has been much scarred by environmentally unsound mining practices across the centuries. There are many tons of untreated debris and slag
scattered across the range, contaminating the soil and the groundwater
. Since mid 20th century, large-scale open-pit mining
compounded matters, causing severe land degradation
in vast mountain areas.
The Sagunto ore-processing facilities, Altos Hornos del Mediterráneo S.A., ceased their activity in 1984 and the Sierra Menera mining company went bankrupt in 1987, following which the mines and their subsidiary facilities were closed.
Massive unemployment hit the mining town of Ojos Negros
after mining activity in the nearby mountains ceased, therefore its population went from 3000 in the 20th century to 560 in 2010. At the time of the closure of the mines there was no official regulation forcing the mining company to repair the environmental damage caused by its activity. The Spanish Mining Law relevant at the time didn't include a provision regarding environmental impact of mining activity when it was promulgated in 1973.
Sistema Ibérico
The Sistema Ibérico or Iberian System is one of the main systems of mountain ranges in Spain.It is a vast and complex system of mountain chains and massifs located in the central regions of the Iberian Peninsula, but reaching almost the Mediterranean coast in the Land of Valencia in the east.From...
. Its highest point is the 1,601 m high summit known as Monte de San Ginés; another important peak is the 1591 m high Mojón Alto.
Administratively the Sierra Menera belongs to the Sierra de Albarracín
Sierra de Albarracín Comarca
Sierra de Albarracín Comarca is a comarca in Aragon, Spain. It is located in the Iberian System, in an area formerly known locally as Tierra de Albarracín, roughly corresponding to the ancient Señorío de Albarracín feudal manor...
, Jiloca
Jiloca Comarca
Jiloca Comarca is a comarca in Aragon, Spain. It is located in Teruel Province, in the mountainous Iberian System area.Its capital is Calamocha and it was formerly known as Comarca de Calamocha....
and Comunidad de Teruel, comarca of Aragon, as well as to the Province of Guadalajara, Castile-La Mancha
Castile-La Mancha
Castile-La Mancha is an autonomous community of Spain. Castile-La Mancha is bordered by Castile and León, Madrid, Aragon, Valencia, Murcia, Andalusia, and Extremadura. It is one of the most sparsely populated of Spain's autonomous communities...
in its western side.
There are aerogenerators on some of the range's ridges.
The main range is aligned in a NNW - SSE direction. It is not as high or conspicuous as other mountain ranges of the Iberian System. From the hydrographic point of view the Sierra Menera divides the Atlantic
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
from the Mediterranean
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
watershed
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
. The eastern rivulets are tributaries of the Jiloca River, the western of the Tagus
Tagus
The Tagus is the longest river on the Iberian Peninsula. It is long, in Spain, along the border between Portugal and Spain and in Portugal, where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Lisbon. It drains an area of . The Tagus is highly utilized for most of its course...
, and the northern have no exit, ending up in the Laguna de Gallocanta
Laguna de Gallocanta
The Gallocanta Lake is an endorheic lake located just to the south of Gallocanta village, between the Aragonese comarcas of Campo de Daroca and Comarca del Jiloca, Aragon, Spain...
basin.
History
The Sierra Menera's name derives from the word for oreOre
An ore is a type of rock that contains minerals with important elements including metals. The ores are extracted through mining; these are then refined to extract the valuable element....
in Spanish language
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, for it has rich iron ore deposits that were exploited since ancient Celtiberian
Celtiberian
Celtiberian may refer to:*the Celtiberians, a Celtic people of the Iberian Peninsula*the Celtiberian language, a Celtic language...
, and later also during Roman times, well until the late 20th century.
A 200 km long railway line was built by the Compañía Minera de Sierra Menera S. A. in 1903 in order to bring the iron ore to the harbor of Sagunto
Sagunto
Sagunto or Sagunt is an ancient city in Eastern Spain, in the modern fertile comarca of Camp de Morvedre in the province of Valencia. It is located in a hilly site, c. 30 km north of Valencia, close to the Costa del Azahar on the Mediterranean Sea...
. This was the longest private company-owned railway line in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. A blast furnace
Blast furnace
A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally iron.In a blast furnace, fuel and ore and flux are continuously supplied through the top of the furnace, while air is blown into the bottom of the chamber, so that the chemical reactions...
facility also belonging to the company was also located in Sagunto, where a pelletizing
Pelletizing
Pelletizing is the process of compressing or molding a material into the shape of a pellet. A wide range of different materials are pelletized including chemicals, iron ore, animal compound feed, and more.- Pelletizing of iron ore :...
plant and a long jetty were built in the 1970s.
The Sierra Menera range has been much scarred by environmentally unsound mining practices across the centuries. There are many tons of untreated debris and slag
Slag
Slag is a partially vitreous by-product of smelting ore to separate the metal fraction from the unwanted fraction. It can usually be considered to be a mixture of metal oxides and silicon dioxide. However, slags can contain metal sulfides and metal atoms in the elemental form...
scattered across the range, contaminating the soil and the groundwater
Groundwater
Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface in soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. A unit of rock or an unconsolidated deposit is called an aquifer when it can yield a usable quantity of water. The depth at which soil pore spaces or fractures and voids in rock...
. Since mid 20th century, large-scale open-pit mining
Open-pit mining
Open-pit mining or opencast mining refers to a method of extracting rock or minerals from the earth by their removal from an open pit or borrow....
compounded matters, causing severe land degradation
Land degradation
Land degradation is a process in which the value of the biophysical environment is affected by one or more combination of human-induced processes acting upon the land....
in vast mountain areas.
The Sagunto ore-processing facilities, Altos Hornos del Mediterráneo S.A., ceased their activity in 1984 and the Sierra Menera mining company went bankrupt in 1987, following which the mines and their subsidiary facilities were closed.
Massive unemployment hit the mining town of Ojos Negros
Ojos Negros
Ojos Negros is a municipality located in the province of Teruel, Aragon, Spain. According to the 2004 census , the municipality has a population of 531 inhabitants....
after mining activity in the nearby mountains ceased, therefore its population went from 3000 in the 20th century to 560 in 2010. At the time of the closure of the mines there was no official regulation forcing the mining company to repair the environmental damage caused by its activity. The Spanish Mining Law relevant at the time didn't include a provision regarding environmental impact of mining activity when it was promulgated in 1973.