Geological students from the University of Lorraine in France are undertaking a project to map out some of the old mines in Bédar as part of a project by the townhall to reopen them as tourist attractions.
The French university has been sending students to the area on field trips for the last few years now, but this year Professor Christian Hibchs suggested that an interesting project would be the mapping of two of the largest and best preserved mines, La Higuera & La Mulata. Local townhall company Bédar Sostenible, which helps organise the trips, agreed and together with the townhall & local volunteer group Asociación de Amigos del Argar (AAA) started planning the work.
The idea is to use the professional quality maps to plan out and make safe guided routes within these two mines for tourists. Bedar townhall says the project will be “expensive”, but that it will do its utmost to attract government funding for the scheme if the maps prove the plans are viable.
If Bedar succeeds in reopening the mines, they will become the first such tourism route in the province, and the 30th reopened mine in Spain.
The two mines in question both closed in the early years of the 20th century, and mined iron ore.