Hambach: The Monster Excavators Digging The Biggest Hole In Europe

While researching my Vennbahn video on Google Maps, I noticed something that looked really weird just to the east... so the next day I went to see it: and found the biggest hole in Europe.
Drone shots thanks to:
Rob Kingston - / @robkingston1483
Drone-Visions - / sirijoga
Music: "Gold" by Klee

[@fredrikcarlen3212]

Yeah let's shut down those dangerous black magic powerplants and replace them with bad quality coal!!

[@GabZonY]

that made me so annoyed

[@blendpinexus1416]

i don't get the logic from these environmentalist pureists, right now there is no way to cover the whole power consumption of a nation with solar, wind, and hydro power without a very lengthy and rediculusly expensive construction effort to build enough solar panels, windmills, hydrodams, and battery banks (for smooth power delivery of the wind and solar) when nuclear power is just much easier, cheaper, and even in the long term just better.

[@unknownentity742]

scooter800m also, nuclear energy is one of them most cleanest and most efficient ways of creating energy. Some environmentalists are just retarded.

[@GabZonY]

@@unknownentity742 also way healthier and safer than fossile fuels

[@beachmobjellies]

and whats best: it all happened under chancellor angela merkel, who was a phycisist

[@jonreid7957]

The irony at 6:22 of a single wind turbine next to the biggest coal mine on earth....

[@colinmacdonald1869]

Yes, that oughta solve it! German green credentials are good again.

[@divinemoments5344]

It's largest open-pit mine in Europe. There are bigger open-pit mines and coal mines in other parts of the world.

[@Koelnuops]

There are over 10 Wind Turbine when you drive on the Autobahn next to Hambach

[@bryanmartinez6600]

The little turbine that could... barely

[@jastreb1081]

I'm living in the general area(we have 3 big holes all in all, not just one), and they're still a pretty common sight, the entire sky is filled with red lights at night. They've been building more and more of them since the descision to stop coal mining before 2035.

[@BryonLape]

Replace nuclear with crappy brown coal...yeah...that's good thinking...

[@Thiefnuker]

It's wrong though. It wasnt environmentalists, it was the conservatives who shut down nuclear power in a (succesful) attempt to steal votes from the green party after the Fukushima disaster.

[@keppelmarc4775]

better then Radioactive Shit .. right ? :/ maybe one day we send our shit to SpaceX or we will be able to Reuse it :D

[@antman7673]

@@keppelmarc4775 Good idea sending nuclear waste to space. Only needs a huge pile of explosive fuel to propel it. -Nothing can go wrong if it explodes in mid air. Despite the other fact 1kg of cargo going to the ISS costs $20k.

[@keppelmarc4775]

@@antman7673 sooo.. we cand do anything whit our nuclear shit .. oke . Good to know 🤣🤣🤣

[@canuzzi]

This crappy brown coal were the before nuclear in Germany. And they are shutting them down too - in my preference it should have been coal first. But well - Tschernobyl and Fukushima happened. And so nuclear was shut down first.

[@EricB256]

I once visited this place with a group of other students when I was at uni. We got the chance to drive into the mine with a bus, past several excavators all the way down to the bottom of the pit, looking at the dark lignite layer visible on the outer walls. The scariest thing was not the huge excavators beside us, but that the bus could have gotten stuck at any time because the path into the mine consists of very loose material, kind of like desert sand. I don't remember if they let in tourist groups regularly or if it was just us because of our professor's close ties to RWE. On the way there, we also drove through the ghost towns on the edge of the mine which were in the process of being torn down entirely. There was a real cruel vibe in those places.

[@nicolasschneider1284]

Even the newly built sourrounding villages, where the displaced villagers live now seemed off to me when i was there this year. Really eerie vibe but very fascinating

[@dinkopausic6357]

Geology RWTH?

[@enzymef4387]

I've been there as well, as part of a school trip. Went down to the bottom of the pit, and saw the (at the time?) biggest excavator in the world. It was pretty cool, but gave me an uncomfortable feeling as well I remember.

[@taari1]

Thanks for the warning and kind intervention about not trying to start a new kilometres wide coal mine in my backyard, as I was JUST about to do so.

[@jve89]

The maximum amount of accident free days is 99 haha. They don't have a lot of faith in themselves.

[@troodon1096]

They went 100 days without an accident once. They threw a party to celebrate, but someone twisted their ankle during the celebration.

[@jl.7739]

Troodon it was called the “große Baggerparty” great excavator Party, on top of one of these excavators. One guy had one Jägermeister to many and fell off.

[@christopherg2347]

It is mining. Not the safest work. A lot of the work involves maintenance, wich is about as save as repairing overland power cables. They got 1.5k workers. So the chance of *someone* having an accident is big.

[@christopherg2347]

@@jl.7739 You seriously believe the workers are allowed on those machines when they are not working? Or even on the area? The Foreman and Security Team would rip them a new one after that. Not to mention that work insurance would propably not cover that.

[@jl.7739]

Christopher G how do the hip young digital natives say these days? I think: wooosh is the word they use?

[@stevenjlovelace]

At what point does a hole get so big that it's no longer a hole at all? That's not the setup to a joke, but a philosophical question. This honestly looks more like a valley at this point than a proper hole.

[@Glaggle]

Well, a mathematician would argue that so long as it's a blind hole, it's not really a hole at all.

[@tahilan7160]

But it is an hole that is in an veryy flat area

[@tomgucwa7319]

...mohorovic- discontinualiety : 22 miles

[@tomgucwa7319]

Mohorovicic.,.discontinuity...

[@xaiano794]

I have a Lego bucket wheel excavator, I'm off to my back garden to make a surface mine

[@UnitSe7en]

Normal people call them _open-cut_ mines.

[@xaiano794]

@@UnitSe7en I believe it's open cast in the UK

[@vHindenburg]

I wish that model already had come out when I was a kid would so damn much wanted it.

[@xaiano794]

@@vHindenburg me too, but when I saw it I thought 'I'm an adult, I can do what I want' and bought it just because I could.

[@vHindenburg]

@@xaiano794 Well the model is just awesome. gongrats on gifting yourself. One of the things I enjoy as an adult. You can do a lot of the thing you just couldnt afford or have theballs to ask money for.

[@paladisious]

6:22 look at the scar on the landscape caused by that wind power!

[@AA-yn5nx]

thats not a wind turbine... thats a jet engine of mas destruction

[@maxkraus7063]

ist halt hässlich das scheißding

[@_qwe_fk_1700]

@@maxkraus7063 verschnörkelt die „schöne Landschaft“

[@dustybricks113]

Funny thing, it takes more strip mines to make wind power then coal. Solar is even worse, not to mention the toxic batteries that last as long as nuclear fuel rods but are in every electrical device. Lithium residue gets into ground water easier then nuclear waste as well. Carbon foot print is a joke started by rich people to laugh at every one else in the form of a tax.

[@BelaJuTe]

I started digging a hole the size of a city in my back yard but one unfortunate day some protesters and the city council came and shut me down.

[@philf.4751]

Hahaha, I can see that you're lying becaufe if you did dig a hole this big, the government (at least the german) would support you as much as possible.

[@BelaJuTe]

Phil Fn Wrong, the Green Party rules in my state

[@bartholomewdan]

:OOOOOOOOOO

[@BenSenneck92]

That closed motorway looks like it could be a lot of fun!

[@Bohnenwasser]

I may be here very late, but trust me, everything there is about this hole is no fun. I live very close to "old Hambach", and yes, new Hambach already exists. I was there and spoke to activists ... Some of them even stuck rusty nails in potatoes and threw them at police officers. Imagine walking through a village without seeing a single person ... Is half a century of electricity really worth destroying the landscape forever? Well, it will turn into a huge lake, but that is not good for nature and the people who have lost their home in which they grew up either...

[@dinkopausic6357]

@@Bohnenwasser German anti-nuclear activists should know that this is the consequence of their action. For the near future, it's either burning coal or splitting atoms that will provide energy, and while one is retarded, the other has quite good development possibilities. Grüße aus Aachen

[@tomitiustritus6672]

@@dinkopausic6357 Please do your homework on this topic and when you research the history of german energy politics, start earlier than 2011. This is the kind of take you hear from people who really think germanies exit from nuclear power generation was decided in 2011 by Merkel. And now, the same clowns that now whine for getting back into nuclear power generation were in the government in 2011, causing this entire fuck-up in the first place, by smashing the timetable and build up programs for transitioning to renewables that had been going since 2000 back in 2010 and rolling back the decision, only to flip on it in 2011, !ess than half a year later, but refusing to clean up the mess they had caused. This is not the story of how phasing out nuclear power is not working. This is the story of the conservatives and market liberal coalition of 2009-2013 deliberately crashing a well running and on schedule energy transition, only to half assedly reinstating it, without fixing what they broke in the process. Then they boasted for a few years that they were responsible for germany phasing out nuclear power, only to flip again and start blaming renewables and environmentalists for the mess THEY caused themselves and calling for bringing back nuclear power AGAIN. The most frustrating part of it is, how undeservedly smug the pro-nuclear crowd is in thc process.

[@SpiritmanProductions]

Surprised the Grand Tour guys haven't been there ... yet.

[@dennisthum1499]

it's often very windy because there is literally nothing near it, except an coal power station

[@markg155]

I once was down there, they do give excursions into the excavation. The machines are really really big and when you stand at the bottom it is impressive to see all sorts of now non-native vegetation and fossil like artifacts pulled up from the earth, well preserved so deep down.

[@TheTimTraveller]

Ok how do I get onto one of these trips? Sounds amazing!

[@markg155]

@@TheTimTraveller Someone from the company arranged it back then. They had a bus and everything that would pick you up. I am trying to remember if it was the Hambach or next door site Garzweiler we visited. Anyhow with my limited German knowledge I found this, perhaps it helps. It talks about group but also individual visits. www.group.rwe/innovation-wissen-nachbarschaft/anlagen-besichtigen/?dateFrom=07.10.2019&dateTo=24.04.2020&list1=* Anyway the thing you are looking for (those big holes) are the "Tagebau". I hope you find what you are looking for and get to experience all of this from close by.

[@Mike-tg7dj]

That's sad what with all those fossils being destroyed.

[@PrograError]

@@Mike-tg7dj to be frank, there's kind of plenty to go around, and also coal and Diamond is kind of a fossil

[@andreww2098]

@@PrograError Diamonds aren't fossils they only form in volcanic vents, you will not find them in coal

[@ala0284]

Germany: making random holes all over north west Europe since 1914

[@fryphillipj560]

touché

[@paulabo123]

You welcome

[@debries1553]

This hole is nothing, you should see what terrible holes the Germans dig on our beautiful Dutch beaches every summer.

[@rubscratch98]

Hehe

[@goldminegaming6242]

DAS IST MEINE KÖL VERDAMT is what I heard last year visiting Zeeland when I got in a hole. Seems like the Germans like to dig in on the ol' Atlanticwal haha

[@willygoat9390]

Aww

[@roadrunner6224]

I heard this now more than once, why do you Dutch have such a problem with us Germans digging holes

[@MrBenni93]

that's what you get for blocking our motorways with your caravans :D

[@starlittardis2049]

I appreciate you mentioning the tactile map for blind folks. That's the sort of thing most people probably wouldn't mention, so, as a disabled person, I'm glad you did. It may not be important to everyone, but hopefully if stuff for disabled people is mentioned enough, it will get people to consider accessibility more (which is desperately needed).

[@millomweb]

The human world isn't designed for the visually impaired. Most humans don't have the mental capacity to think logically. We research blindness, we research deafness. We should be researching installing a USB port to our brains - the blind get cameras, the deaf, microphones. The legless, USB legs.

[@starlittardis2049]

​@@millomwebI understand where you're coming from, but a lot of disabled folks (myself included) don't want that. I don't want to be less disabled, I just want the world to be built for disabled people as well as non-disabled people. I know a lot of blind folks don't care about seeing and a lot of deaf folks have no desire to hear. People don't really understand that, but for a lot of us being disabled is just part of who we are, we've existed this way our whole lives, so not only has it become a big part of our identities (and our connection to the disabled community and disabled culture, which I would never want to lose) but we've also adapted everything in our lives to work with our disabilities. Suddenly being non-disabled (or as close to it as possible) would be a massive change, not just physically but mentally and in terms of our identity, as well as in terms of how much stuff in our lives we'd suddenly have to change. If my entire life has been built for my disabled self, suddenly being (functionally) non-disabled would uproot that entire life. I don't want that. I like my disabled self, my connection to the disabled community, etc. Point is, I know some disabled people want to be non-disabled, but a lot of us don't; we're content as we are and have invested a lot into our disabled selves. We want the world to recognise us; we shouldn't have to change because the world is inaccessible to us as we are. And I know I for one would be very wary of any kind of technology like what you describe - for example, what if a blind person's camera got hacked?

[@millomweb]

@@starlittardis2049 Just because it's not what you want (or think you want) does not at all mean it shouldn't be available to those who do. I think you also miss a more important point. If that can be done for 'disabled' people it can be done for able-bodied as well. Moving on from that 2nd stage, we have the third stage - where man made systems actually perform better such that the eyes are discarded at birth and replaced with video cameras with very clear vision and zoom lenses. Were then subtly going into the android area then - replacing the natural bits with superior man made stuff. Someone's done a race in a 'walking suit' - terribly slowly. In a few decades, the walking suit may outperform normal human legs - and who knows where that'll lead. Brains with better real world interfaces and mobility units. life support machines space travel converting animal brains that live years longer than humans - really makes the mind boggle!

[@trespire]

@@starlittardis2049 Accepting people as they are, showing respect and considderation towards another person is important imo. We could all benifit from practicing tollerance.

[@questioner1596]

@@millomweb, while that sounds beneficial, I worry about a new form of classist society where the poor are excluded even more. Want to drive a car? You must pay $20,000 for eyesight improvements. Want to get a date? Another massive expense for whatever implant is fashionable. Want an apartment in the nice building? You need the hearing upgrade so you play your TV and have conversations more quietly after 10 pm.

[@divinemoments5344]

That moisture in the air might have been from the excavators themselves. The excavated material is sprayed with water to prevent formation of excessive amounts of dust.

[@DynamoRyan]

Love the Animals of Farthing Wood theme playing in the background when you’re talking about the mine eating up the forest. Brilliant!

[@jasperedwards3341]

then it becomes a baggersee

[@fritzkuhne2055]

it may be germanys fouth biggest lake at that point

[@jasperedwards3341]

@@fritzkuhne2055 i no most of them i go swimming

[@Ewiggrimmig]

Not before 2100, meaning my children (if I had any) would probably die around the time this hole is fixed. RWE (the owner of the hole) will probably wiggle out of most of the cost as well.

[@divingdave2945]

I think that lake would actually be so big that it would have an impact on the local climate.

[@nemofunf9862]

Baggermeer in this case

[@berenscott8999]

Shuts down nuclear reactors, instead digs a gigantic hole in the ground and removes coal instead. Clap clap Germany.

[@mweskamppp]

Yeah, a political decision. But that old hole digging for coal will end within about 15 years. The last deep mines were closed this year. 40% of the electrical power is generated by wind, solar or biogas.

[@berenscott8999]

@@mweskamppp That isn't the point. We need nuclear power if we are ever going to solve this problem completely.

[@Rotsteinblock]

I rather have coal dust in the air than nuclear dust.

[@Dragon.7722]

That hole was dug way before the first nuclear reactor.

[@mobeydick37]

@@Rotsteinblock Actually you need to enlighten yourself about the radiation releases from burning coal. In fact, the fly ash emitted by a power plant-a by-product from burning coal for electricity-carries into the surrounding environment 100 times more radiation than a nuclear power plant producing the same amount of energy.

[@lukasrohrmoser3213]

I'm German so I obviously knew about this and I've seen it on Google maps but seeing the drone footages, this is actually terribly depressing

[@williamsmith8164]

This town was rightfully flatten during WW2 thanks to the BRITISH RAF. Shame we couldn’t destroy more lol 😂

[@theviniso]

You say depressing, I say impressive. Not that I don't care about the environment, I just think there are much, much bigger threats to nature than this coal mine.

[@Katzenliebhaber01]

@@williamsmith8164 I do not think it's funny to wish that a >90% destroyed city should be destroyed more. How would you feel if someone destroys your home and then some guy come and complain it's sad, they didn't destroy more... That's my home city you're talking about. Why, in your opinion was Düren rightfully destroyed. Why should it be destroyed by I guess you mean a 100%?

[@Katzenliebhaber01]

@Lukas Rohrmoser Well, it's even more depressing, if you live here and see that hole in a 5 minute ride with the car or 15 Minutes with the bike... And it gets worse if you look out if a plane and see three of such holes next to another (Inden, Hambach,Garzweiler)

[@TheSynecdoche]

It is depressing but why on earth did the German government decide to close down its nuclear power plants? This digging does infinitely more harm to the environment. But I'm curious: what will happen when the mine is no longer productive? Will it be turned into a lake?

[@Wulgra]

I have lived all my life (24 years) near the Hambach opencast mine and I know most of the regional views. Which are on the one hand against (environmental aspects) and for (job aspects). And this video in English is absolutely great, even the German city pronunciation fits pretty well. Keep it up, definitely a channel with great potential! Best regards from Jülich!

[@deonmurphy6383]

As the sarcastic bumper sticker from my youth said: “Strip Mining Prevents Forest Fires”.

[@jed-henrywitkowski6470]

LoL.

[@thirdbaseman124]

And also "Earth First. We'll mine the other planets later."

[@benebeck5628]

Lesson: Keep playing Minecraft to prevent forest fires.

[@fullnuclearbreakfast]

Is that like strip poker?

[@mrjoa96]

Most underrated channel

[@BuioPestato]

not anymore

[@alexandertheok9610]

to make this video any better, he would have to use that kzbin.info/www/bejne/f4Kzh5KsacuEb5o music at this 5:55 time lol (I changed the time in the link and timed the timestamp exactly right, so open the link, play the video in the link and then klick on the timestamp in the comment lol)

[@mats7492]

i gotta compliment your german.. barely an accent!

[@dabj9546]

I assume you're kidding but I really can't tell

[@hugonottmayr]

He isn't

[@benja_mint]

it's true, tim's pronunciation is pretty okay

[@666Tomato666]

@@dabj9546 German humour is no laughing matter!

[@anjachan]

agree! usually it sounds so funny when english speaking people try to speak german ;)

[@ksthebest]

I can't quite put my finger on what it is (it's probably a lot of things), but something about your videos just lightens my mood every time.

[@TheTimTraveller]

Ah cheers Koen! That's lovely to hear

[@Tflexxx02]

It's Tim's personality: witty, funny, intelligent, articulate, and good natured.

[@Coccinelf]

Normally, yes I agree but not this one. Particularly the drone footage, it's really depressing.

[@do0m819]

It's the mans pleasant demeanor :)

[@Dragon.7722]

@@Coccinelf I find it very beautiful.

[@dieVitaCola]

I'm a simple man, If I see Sindorf, my hometown, I upvote this Video.

[@Jomizify]

MS Kart Center, Bowl Position and Henrys Sandbar, always some reasons to go visit Sin City

[@NikolausUndRupprecht]

These excavators are massive. Yet they look almost tiny when you look down at them. I visited the mine this summer, but from the other, the eastern side. There is a visitor centre by the energy company that runs the mine. And they think of it as a „Landschaftspark“. Literal translation „landscape park“. They have already extracted so many lignite that it will be impossible to close that hole again. Hence it will become a lake near the end of this century. Letting it fill up with ground water will take some decades or so.

[@lonestarr1490]

"Letting it fill up with ground water will take some decades or so." If it works at all. Due to climate change, Germany is becoming a lot dryer, causing the water table to drop. They're faced with the same issue in the east of Germany, where there are several shutdown lignite surface mines. Originally, they intended to create a landscape out of lakes and canals connecting them, so tourists can come and live in floating houses, travel everywhere by boat, etc. But all these plans depend on water, obviously, and it's unclear whether or not they'll get enough of it for anything of that to work out.

[@IQauris]

exactly where is the visitor center located?

[@Ben_306]

I recently went there myself, and yes, without a car it is quite a journey, I chose the Elsdorf side as it was closer to Cologne (train-bus-walk). Nothing can prepare you for the sheer size of this mine, and the coal dust at times prevented me from even seeing the other side, and when it was visible, you could barely make out anything more then sky-ground. The machines are as long as a train end-to-end. Go and see for yourself, and stand on one of the observation platforms for a good couple minutes, the ludicrous size of this thing makes one realize the terrifying scale of modern power.

[@creativedesignation7880]

The song playing over the drone footage is kind of fitting. It roughly says: "And every moment, there is no going back. we are part of a whole, that is bigger than you and me. We will be like gold (repeated)" Especially since in Germany coal is also known as the gold of the Ruhr area.

[@eddienotts]

Got to say you really are a phenomenal presenter/ Narrator. Kept me interested start to finish, quite an achievement!

[@robincowley5823]

And thank you for introducing me to Klee. Much appreciated.

[@bartmulder6995]

Absolutely fantastic channel! I love this kind of exploring! I try to do this on my bike everywhere I go.

[@PKownzthem]

I love the subtle hint of using the animals of farthing wood theme when explaining the Hambacher Forst issue in a seemingly neutral way I‘ve watched that video when you first uploaded it, stopped by there some months ago when visiting friends in aachen, rewatched it just now and only then noticed that I had a weirdly emotional response to that melody

[@Catswhiskerdetector]

I live nearby in the Netherlands and have been visiting every few months for years now. It's weird to see towns slowly turning into ghost towns. There are always a couple of stubborn people who refuse to be bought out and stay there till the bitter end.

[@fritzkuhne2055]

its horrible. and all that just because they shut down all atomic energy like total donkeys

[@mats7492]

@@fritzkuhne2055 atomic energy is terribly bad for the environment as well... nuclear waste is among the worst waste that exists on this planet. it also causes cancer for people who leave nearby.. solar and wind are the future!

[@fritzkuhne2055]

@@mats7492 solar and wind MAY BE the future, in the future! but at this time its just not eficient enough and theres no way to get all energy for any developed country on earth just from these two sources. they also have their problems, being in very expensive for the amount of energy you get, not getting energy at all (at night, no wind). also especially solar panels are incredible harmfull to the environment when making them from preccious metals in china, and they break after just some years of use

[@_qwe_fk_1700]

@@fritzkuhne2055 lol wtf, it is far more efficient, „just has to built“ which politicians dont want to do because then their friends at RWE could not burn coal anymore. Furthermore coal is heavily subsidized it dont know what is efficient about that? Solar panels also dont just brake after a few years?

[@fritzkuhne2055]

@@_qwe_fk_1700 they do break and are hard hard to recycle. Also if coal was not subsidized the prize for electricity would be even more insane. Germany has the highest prize on earth

[@Testerinopelinokinosjwizldid]

the song playing at 2:00 is the theme song to a cartoon (in dutch : beesten bos is boos) about animals coping with their habitat being destroyed by machines to build houses. Kinda a great pick for a giant plot of land being dug out like this. incredible!

[@naturallight4745]

Thank you vm Tim. Great channel. Informative. Well presented. I love the humour 😊

[@Foojaleeckalikeelamaka]

1:40 piano cover of Animals Of Farthing Wood???

[@bluntobjct]

well spotted! Very fitting!

[@thechildrenoftherev0]

I came to the comments to say the same thing! I was wondering why the music was making me feel so nostalgic. It seems like a very fitting musical choice.

[@QuiranPup]

I was like; hey my favorite tv show from when i was a kid

[@edopronk1303]

Yes! Thanks for putting my attention to it. :-)

[@ClickItYT]

I just want to appreciate the beautiful song "Gold" by Klee that plays during the drone shoots. Kind of ironic given the massive destruction of nature.

[@brendantheprettygood]

I noticed the song and I liked it.

[@JamesHomer-Boyd]

Got into Klee's back catalogue through the music on these drone shots. A brilliant musical beat combo.

[@alecmoore7664]

Tim, you’re the best! I’ve re-watched this video countless times!

[@Voltaic_Fire]

"We want those nuclear plants shut down!" "Ok, we'll burn more coal." "Oh, we've really not helped at all have we?"

[@Trepnast]

Your videos are amazing, dude, and I just spent most of my afternoon watching them. Love your contend, please keep it up!

[@TheTimTraveller]

Ah cheers man! I'm having fun making them, I'll try and get one out every few weeks

[@Mr_Squiggle]

"round of applause there" so so reflective of their thought processes.

[@Gandorhar]

Just got your videos in my recommendations and i must say i love your ironic commentary style.!

[@1882osr]

Animals of Farthing wood! Just thought I'd shout out that I noticed that little jingle, not sure many others would of :)

[@necrid1503]

Hey tim, i kinda stumbled upon your channel some time ago, and must say i do enjoy each and every video of you! so keep up the good work!

[@TheTimTraveller]

Thank you!

[@andrewl5127]

Yeah. The channel is genuinely amusing, informitive and well written.

[@simonjoelwarkentin7087]

I was born in Düren and I have been in Hambach. I love your video and thank you for doing it because there is really not much stuff on the Internet about Düren and Hambach!

[@Ennio444]

Love your content! Very informative, in depth and an engaging watch. I like the humour as well. 4 out of 5. Not 5, because I'd like these videos to be longer and wider in scope (while still in depth) but I know this takes time and effort. I'm subscribing, keep it up!

[@morbvsclz]

I've been there on a University Trip and made a guided tour into the mine. They have special trucks for tourist groups to go and visit it. And I have to say it was absolutely amazing. Leaving concerns about the Environment aside, it is an incredible achievement and the Machinery is absolutely spectacular, partical when they drive you right up to the diggers and you actually realize how huge they are. From the viewing point they looked so tiny... That really then put into perspective how large the "hole" is. And it will certainly make for an impressive lake once they are done... And the decades have passed that will be needed to fill it :D But I don't mind surface mines that much. They look like gashing wounds to nature while in operation, but they very quicky turn into beautiful ecosystems afterwards and nature takes them back really quickly. Much better than underground mines that often require you to pump out the ground water for all eternity, even after Operation has seized and despite that still can cause whole regions to "sink" down a couple of meters. As you can also see quite near to Hambach in some parts of the Ruhrgebiet.

[@Steroumel]

You stopped me from digging my back yard... Unbelievable! There is a news story from some years ago about the forest and the protesters that live inside it, it was very interesting!

[@TheTimTraveller]

Ah I didn't realise people were actually living there, that's some serious commitment

[@cady7944]

@@TheTimTraveller They live there in tree houses(so police will have problems arresting theses heroes) so RWE (the mine operator) can not remove the forest and start digging

[@user-xg8yy7yl1d]

They should go get fucking jobs

[@Monologica]

@@user-xg8yy7yl1d You should be thankful they're trying to stop the destruction of our habitable environment.

[@user-xg8yy7yl1d]

Monologica Yes protesting against non emitting energy causing more coal to be mined and then protesting against that now What the fuck are we supposed to do? Go back to using oil lamps?

[@Adriaan_von_Grobbe]

I am so glad, that i stumbled over your channel. So funny and interesting at once! Keep up your good work, you have a new fan follower!

[@YaBoiDallin]

Love your work! Very informative and interesting, and your type of humor is great! Subscribed! Thank you KZbin algorithm

[@Quinn_Dissglerio]

I live your way of presenting interesting places. So many good quotes in this Video again. 🤣

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

Honestly, instead of coal I'd rather would let them keep nuclear running until renewable is able to fulfill demand.

[@user-xg8yy7yl1d]

Wind and solar are unreliable meme energy sources Just use nuclear fission and hydroelectric until controlled fusion reactions become reality. I’d give it about 30 years. Fusion will make everything else obsolete

[@BlackRNGesus]

Yeah but you have a brain to think... And these people actually not🤣🤣

[@KaiWritesCode]

@@user-xg8yy7yl1d People have been saying fusion will be read soon for 50 years.

[@theviniso]

We still don't have a safe place to storage the nuclear waste, though.

[@tr7zw]

@@theviniso Check out Tom Scott's video about how Finnland created the first long term storage facility for high-level nuclear waste. Tbh sounds better than coal/gas.

[@SOBEROUS]

Hi Tim, your vidoes are entertaining, historical and educational, which is a nice combination by itself. Do more of these, travel to interesting places with bizzare history to share with us.

[@tyroone245]

At 1:32 this is the intro from The Animals of Farthing Wood (or in German "Als die Tiere den Wald verließen"). I love it!

[@TheTimTraveller]

Didn't know they made a German version! That's great, I thought only my UK and French viewers would get the reference

[@tyroone245]

​@@TheTimTraveller I loved the german version as a kid. I didn't know there was an english version and always assumed it was german

[@lennartmiau6504]

Dat opener though - had me laughing for quite a bit there! Your sense for comedy is really great man :) ...and why do you pronounce German so well? oO

[@TheTimTraveller]

Ah cheers Lennart! I studied German in school, so that helps :)

[@crowlord]

I frikin love your backing tunes. Who else spotted the animals of farthing wood!!!

[@georgehugh1]

Glad it wasn't just me

[@jimjenkins673]

Your comment about having to burn more dirty coal due to the nuclear plants being shutdown by environmentalists got you a new subscriber today sir.....brilliant!

[@HeadsFullOfEyeballs]

Unfortunately it isn't quite true -- German coal usage has declined every year since 2012 from what I can tell. The loss of nuclear power may be _slowing_ the decline, but they aren't replacing nuclear power plants with coal power plants.

[@swunt10]

and it's absolutely wrong.. de.statista.com/statistik/daten/studie/156258/umfrage/braunkohlefoerderung-in-deutschland-seit-1990/

[@gregeporter]

Thanks for the video, Time Traveller. My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed it (as always!) :)

[@matsv201]

Irony of it is that that hole is more than 10 times bigger than the over limit iradiated zone next to fukushima nuclear power plant... And the iradiated zone shrinks every year... And well.. this hole... Kind of not... Also the total power capacity of this mine is still less than fukusshima power plant use to be.... Conclusion... A nuclear disaster is still better than a cosl powerplant working as it supose to

[@tumu_bandit]

Nien madame. The environment gets effected in a much vast manner. The affected air can spread all over the world, yes, all over the goddamn world if necessary precautions are not taken. The land destruction is just a part of the problem. But the good thing is it can be quarantined much easily with latest technology. Also the possibility of a nuclear disaster is very little, if ofcourse you build things of superior quality which the Germans are famous of anyway. The policy to ban nuclear power plants was the most harmful stance ever taken by the German government. It will inevitably force more mining thereby increasing environmental pollution. The so called environmentalists are not willing to understand that it was due to their actions that more mines are created. Such a shame really.

[@Kennorx]

Well the Fukushima powerplant is right at the coast and a lot of the radioactive particles actually went into the sea and the sea area is not included in the size of that area. Also this hole also shrinks once they are done there. The land is still there and not contaminated it can be used afterwards. While it is a barren wasteland while in use once they are done getting the coal it can be turned back into a healthy region. Something you can't really do that easily with those irradiated areas. The only part that stays is that it is still that hole. And lastly: what even is that comparison between a power plant and a mine? One produces power the other holds the product from which the power is generated. And if you are comparing all the possibly stored power within that mine to the power output of the fukushima nuclear powerplant over its lifetime the powerplant isn't really doing that well. I agree coal mining is bad but don't make up some bullshit to make the consequences of a nuclear accident look any better than they truly are.

[@tumu_bandit]

@@Kennorx The CO2 for God's sake. Nuclear powerplant has wayyyyy less carbon footprint than the coal powerplants.

[@matsv201]

@@Kennorx no. The wind was inland. Pretty much all od the radiation was inland in a narrow belt. The hole have been there for 40 years. Today fukushima high radiation zone is 1/10 as it was 8 years ago. In 40 years all of it will be gone. Fukushima power plant was more powerfull than the total capacity of this mine.

[@iRaps1]

A nuclear power plant (even if working properly at all times) is an insane 100% risk for us, because we have NOWHERE for the waste to go. It'll kill us slowly.

[@simonaiso]

Those excavators you're talking about are of course BAGGER 288's. For those that are not familiar with it, let me be so free to point you to their theme song: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l6uop5l6aahppdk

[@twothreebravo]

Just found your channel today and I'm two videos in and well, you've earned yourself another subscriber. Thanks :)

[@tvbox6955]

😮 WOW, those drones make some groovy music when they fly! 🎶

[@loganbaileysfunwithtrains606]

We have “strip mines” in WV basically a surface mine but since there’s not exactly a lot of flat ground here they usually just level and flatten a mountain, and usually when they inevitability become a abandoned due to the coal market crash they become the playground for all types of off-road vehicles

[@k.jamescarters9557]

The most inappropriate wind turbine ever there! That’s obscene

[@liam6345]

Just discovered you and I love seeing stuff like this, that practically nobody knows about. I subscribed and if I used social media I would share.

[@wcolby]

Excellent mix of information, comedy and sarcasm, in that order.

[@123marijn321]

Visited this place a few weeks ago. We drove the abandoned road leading up to the edge of the mine while Echoes by Pink Floyd was playing on the background (The eerie middle part of the song was on). The combination of the music and the landscape made it feel so desolate and post-apocalyptic. It was so strange and scary to observe such a huge man made scar in our planet, destroying forests and villages around it. A sight to behold, but for all the wrong reasons.

[@koningbolo4700]

Like Green Power in the Netherlands is in actual fact (or at the very least MAINLY - as in 85% of it) nuclear power from France...

[@fritzkuhne2055]

its just so stupid. somtimes i think our leaders are trying to destroy our countries

[@Reddsoldier]

It's sad really that the nation famous for its windmills is getting outdone by the English East Coast where offshore wind is generating huge amounts of energy.

[@Ludix147]

Nuclear is awesome, though

[@ApemanMonkey]

Source for the 85% ?

[@JustScrapHD]

i actualy dont have that big of a problem with nuclear energy. As long as they are regulated properly, its very safe and definetly better for the environment (even in case of a fallout.). They just need to find a solution for the radioactive waste

[@benstoever]

Very nice video. If you ever go there again, you could also get out of the bus at Hambach and walk through the forest from there. It's a much nicer area with another outlook point and you will not have to go around fenced areas.

[@tomatosoup44]

You have such a great sense of humour! You really know how to make 'nothing' interesting! Subscribed!

[@Pahricida]

I remember seeing one of those giant excavators up close once... they had to cross the Autobahn and I think the road was closed for several days since it takes these things that long to travel short distances.

[@Astrofrank]

Top speed 600 m/h

[@Alorand]

I think that it's great that Germany wanted to upgrade to 4th gen nuclear reactors so much that they couldn't help contain their excitement and shut down the old reactors down too soon...

[@sgschmidt]

now thats a big hole great music choice for the drone footy - fits the german "green revolution"

[@summergram]

Incredible video! Thanks for sharing, loved the montage at the end, echt toll!

[@cardijey6918]

Yes, the decision to quit nuclear was rushed and not quiet thought through. Still, please don't generalise environmentalists. The group protesting the coal industry and their impact on the environment and the climate is a complete different generation, than the nuclear power protesters.

[@cardijey6918]

@Jody Owen Jesus no, i couldn't do without power and my notebook😂. You can achieve these things without having to live in a dirt hole in the forest. Taking the bus/train to work (It's also much more relaxing than getting in traffic), paying a few bucks extra for green energy in your house, using more reusable stuff and less "throw away" products, not eating meat every day... A lot of us are also pussies who cry around when you eat a Bratwurst once. Really, you can never be "perfect" and you don't have to be. We just try to reduce our energy/fuel consumption as much as we feel we can handle. Meanwhile, it will get easier providing for our decreased demand without coal. It's of course not that easy, but we have studies showing that if you just mounted solar panels on germanys roofs, that would already be able to produce the required amount. We've just gotta research energy-storage technology.

[@cardijey6918]

@Jody Owen But yea, if you have to abandon civilization, to save the civilization, theres really no point😂

[@nassimkereimeyd2933]

@Jody Owen Oh it would easily be possible if there was a political lobby for green energy. There is a law that prevents wind turbines from being built too close to settlements (a settlement being at least 4 houses), hindering a lot of expansion (in addition to the government cutting almost all funding for green energy while simultaniously paying Billions in subsidies to coal mines "to save" a couple hundred jobs, ignoring the fact that roughly 10000 jobs were lost by cutting ffunding for said green energy). But if there's coal mines they'll happily give the permission to tear down several villages (without the residents having any choice or way to fight against that), tearing down historical buildings and so forth.

[@adrianruhl8361]

Actually a lot of people who protested the nuclear power plants are now protesting coal And the anti coal movement has learned a great deal of tactics from them Still this is a younger generation

[@cardijey6918]

@@adrianruhl8361 But not the majority. The "Atomkraft nein Danke" protests were for the most of us, our parents. Of course there will be a crosssection of these two groups, but just saying "First environmentalists take away nuclear and then cry about the results" really doesn't fit here. Getting rid of nuclear was also much more of a security question, than a environment one, so the motives don't even match.

[@alarii2582]

I'm from the town of Elsdorf so I'm happy you made a Video about this big hole in my backyard.

[@MarioAndreschak]

Yeah, right? First, it's Phil Laude with his "Nicht vom Beckenrand springen"-Video, and now this guy! Elsdorf is going places!

[@mnichols1979]

I love these videos. The narration gives it such a Monte Python kinda vibe.

[@divingdave2945]

lol, I used to live there as a small child before the whole town got dug away. But I can't remember it.

[@briocheoleary5043]

I'm shocked you have so few subs. Your Content is very good

[@TheTimTraveller]

Thanks Brioche! Great name btw. It's just a little channel at the moment but hopefully one day the world will realise what it's missing out on :)

[@briocheoleary5043]

The Tim Traveller I jolly well think they might have now, lol 😅

[@ShoeTheGreyCat]

Great video made even better with an unexpected use of Klee.

[@Gassenhauer]

The "Animals of farthing wood" soundtrack killed me. Nice one.

[@Raybo3D]

I can see the huge cooling towers of the plant from were i live. Everyone here hates the hole and wants them to stop digging

[@stillx1211]

Pulheim is nh schöne Stadt nh

[@peterlustig6888]

Nein

[@nicoflooow6098]

Well i live like 10 kilometers next to it and in our city everbody loves the holes

[@Raybo3D]

@@nicoflooow6098 I have never heard anyone say that. Ever. I have heard people say "they look cool" but no one wants these holes here.

[@nicoflooow6098]

@@Raybo3D why not lotd of Jobs, looks nice interesting machines and will turn into a lake later. And of course energy.

[@patricktheil8844]

I spend nearly an hour trying to figure out where I heard the Music in your Video before. Its Animals of Farthing Wood for anyone whos still wondering.

[@maxnaz47]

It took you an hour to scroll through a few comments?

[@PhilTVtv]

I don't know how I got here but I grew up in a village next to the hole. Its interesting to see someone exploring it for the first time. It is truly massive, the camera does not do it justice. Also: you, my friend have gained a subscriber!

[@shocktrooper2152]

Thanks Tim, I'm now addicted to german music.

[@mattbarker336]

I love the "Animals of Farthing Wood" theme. Because it fits so well. Whole natural habitats destroyed because of human greed and inability to evolve and move on

[@weltensittich1266]

I can't believe there are other people that got that. I love that series!

[@ivanj.conway9919]

Exactly Matt. Exactly, My Brother. My Best. Out.

[@sergarlantyrell7847]

I don't think it's greed to want electric lighting and heating etc... It's mostly just stupidity from eco nut-jobs that saw Germany's nuclear power-stations shut down and sadly this is the result.

[@ivanj.conway9919]

@@sergarlantyrell7847 : They're not nut-jobs my friend, but clearly, this is not better.

[@sergarlantyrell7847]

@@ivanj.conway9919 Well for getting nuclear power scrapped and thinking that electricity would magically appear to replace it... If they were actually trying to reduce pollution, they would spend their time making safer nuclear power or more reliable renewable energy sources, rather than their counter-productive nonsense.

[@EVAUnit4A]

6:18 **B A G G E R - 2 8 8 I N T E N S I F I E S**

[@stevenwhitman1878]

Its mind is full of hatred, violence its its sole vocation!

[@angieulaka]

@@stevenwhitman1878 this murderous machine can never be defeated!

[@babbaracos]

2nd video i watch from you... subscribed :) great video!!! also nice to know what's going on in my backyard... (I'm from Belgium) keep up the good work!

[@user-qu2pv2wp3o]

i like to watch your videos. the topics mostly seem boring, but after watching im always surprised how interesting you make them! kudos !

[@namewarvergeben]

Animals of Farthing Wood theme :)

[@user-xg8yy7yl1d]

Interesting. Here in BC we call the nine waste a “tailings pond” (no I don’t know why it’s called a pond when it’s a pile it’s just old gold rush slang that’s stuck around)

[@realcanadian96]

Yah, they also use it in the Yukon to as my grandma likes to watch"gold rush"

[@chloesmith5485]

In oil sands. Tailing ponds are actual ponds. And they’re for some reason in Athabaska they’re put right next to the river where they leak pollutants regularly into what’s supposed to be drinking water at some point

[@BikerBytes]

Haha, very enjoyable video mate. Loved the music choice at the end, new fan 👍

[@side-fish]

God, that soundtrack in the end. So awesome :O!

[@Balkanjeros1]

So they replaced nuclear energy which is less harmful to environment with this shit plus they dug up a hole like that... anyways,your videos are great,you should be having much more subscribers

[@jasperlambrecht1906]

yeah i thought the same! A year ago i saw a power plant in germany. it has a cool tower like a nuclear power plant but is was brown coal i was late WHAT are we in the early 1920!?i thing brown coal make more deaths than all the nuclear disasters on earth!

[@PeterInWiesbaden]

Coal will be shut down in the next 10-15 years, Haimbach will be one of the first.

[@IamTheHolypumpkin]

@@jasperlambrecht1906 Now comes the "joke": Germany is sill using brown coal despite it being incredible unprofitable. Those mines are subsidized with at least 300 millions each year. And even with those subsidize they have trouble to run profitable. They actually switch of the power-plants when the price falls below €30/MWh two years ago. One of the reasons why we continue using lignite is because the government wants to protect 20k jobs. Which is the right thing to do until you look at the bigger picture. By protecting those 20k jobs they actually destroyed 80k jobs in the renewable energy industry. Oh btw nuclear is nowhere on earth profitable without high subsidies. You can look at some great charts here how incredible unprofitable the lignite power plants became over the last few years. www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-why-german-coal-power-is-falling-fast-in-2019

[@maclafm1252]

After living in Germany for about 6 years, one thing that is very clear, is the hypocracy of German energy politics. "Atomkraft, nein danke" is the one and only thing everyone agrees on, yet they still let shit like this happen.

[@busiderbaer]

@@maclafm1252 True, it took a long time of protesting and media coverage to make RWE and (most) german politicians halt the destruction of the Hambacher Forst to further expand the mine, but even then all those people really care about is money from the big companys and maybe some bandwagon they can jump on if the public is interested and it might gain them votes (like Atomausstieg after Fukushima).

[@bigguy9825]

5:40 That dude probably needs a new car. That ones lagging

[@oxenforde]

In the US, a mining company posts a huge bond before digging starts. After the mining company is finished, the government uses the money in the bond to restore the land. They plant trees, grass, etc. Wildlife returns. Quite lovely. Windmills don't require a bond, so when the windmills wear out, they are left standing. Abandoned wind farms are an eye-sore.

[@HenrysAdventures]

Impressive! I'd always wondered when traveling from London to Germany what that industrial line which runs alongside the main line. I always hoped to glimpse a train on it but no luck yet so I was pleased to see your shot of a train! After a bit of looking on google earth I noticed there's another nearly as big hole up the road!

[@crazypickles8235]

United States: Check out our sprawling, lovely national wonders! Take our Grand Canyon for example, its huge! Germany: ....ours is better....