The Bainiu Mines 白牛厂 in Mengzi District 蒙自县
Historic records contain no indication of the existence of these mines. They were identified by Yang Yuda from industrial materials that mentioned the existence of massive slag dumps.
Fieldwork by Yang Yuda and Nanny Kim, with Ma Qi 马骑, Zhang Kefeng 张轲风, Nie Xun 聂迅, Xia Zijin 夏自金, Jiang Jianguo 姜建国, 2015.11.9., supported by the Mengzi District government and the Bainiu Mining Company
The drive from Mengzi to the mines is about 65 km by mountain tar road, arrive towards 11 am. Engineer Luo shows us around.
He points out that massive amounts of slags used to cover the low ridge opposite. The village Bainiu used to be located in the valley that the plant now occupies, about 2 km upstream, and is mostly deserted now. He thinks that old galleries might still exist under a rock near end of the ridge. To get there, we drive to a power plant and then walk down amongst fields and brambles around a small limestone cliff. In the ground along the nose, slags and debris are still scattered around, but most have been taken away. The mine entrance is situated in a small natural cave.
Three of our group take a look at the upper end of the former slag dumps and walk around the karst cone. The ridge is still covered in slags here, and the upper end of the slag dump can be roughly established as the lower end of steeper scree fields that may be natural, as the brittle rock erodes quickly. We cannot establish more by checking the base of the cliff section of the cone. Come out at the reportedly old village of Zhongzhai (Middle Village, corresponding Xiazhai and Shangzhai also still exist), find no slags all around the cone or on the other side of the ridge.
View from the company headquarters across the valley onto the karst cone of Bainiu and ridge that used to be covered in slags. Photo by Nie Xun.
The slag dump extended from the foot of the karst cone to the end of the ridge that in the photo appears covered in small, regular houses (an abandoned dorm settlement). The ridge continues a little further, turning into the larger valley. Photo by Nie Xun.
Mine entrance in a small karst cave. The cliff is at the low end of the ridge, facing away from the photo above.
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04.jpg: Remains of a furnace recognizable from the red colour of the clay. Photo by Nie Xun.??
The upper end of the slag dump. Photo by Nie Xun.
