Raduša chromium mine
{{Short description|Chromium mine in Saraj Municipality, North Macedonia}}
{{for|the village|Rudnik Raduša}}
File:Поранешниот рудник Радуша.jpg
The Raduša Mine ({{langx|mk|Рудник „Радуша“}}) was a former chromium ore mine located 18 kilometers northwest of the city of Skopje. It served as a crucial source of chromium for Yugoslavia.{{cite encyclopedia |chapter=Raduša |title=Mala splošna enciklopedija |editor-first=Franček |editor-last=Šafar |editor-first2=Jože |editor-last2=Snoj |editor-first3=Oto |editor-last3=Oto Bihalji-Merin |year=1973 |isbn= |publisher=Državna založba Slovenije}} A mining colony was created around the mine, which is still managed as a separate administrative unit under the name Rudnik Raduša. The mine operated under the framework of the Chemico-Electrometallurgical Combine „Jugokrom“.
Outline
The Raduška massif is the largest (approx. {{convert|70|km|abbr=on}}) and is considered the most ore-bearing. Its submontane section is dominated by dunites and harzburgites, where the most significant ore bodies are found. The central zone of the massif is composed of harzburgites and lherzolites, where chromium mineralisation is insignificant. In the upper section, the dunites are more altered, and mineralisation is more present. The chromite ore bodies are associated with dunites and exhibit simple mineralisation. The total ore reserves amount to 649,905 metric tons.Ristovski, Blaže, ed. (2009). "Radulov". Macedonian Encyclopedia, Volume II (М-Ш). Skopje: MANU. p. 1244. Two notable investigators of chromite in Raduša were Stanko Grafenauer (1949–1954) and Kočo Grčev (c. 1962).{{cite book |chapter=Stanko Grafenauer |title=Letopis Slovenske akademije znanosti in umetnosti |language=sl |trans-title=Annals of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Art |year=1974 |publisher=Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts}}{{cite journal |url=https://geoloski-vjesnik.hgi-cgs.hr/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/1964_Crnkovic_222.pdf |title=Kočo Grčev |first=Branko |last=Crnkovič |journal=Geološki vjesnik |year=1963 |publisher=Zagreb Geological Institute, Croatian Geological Societyo-rudarski institut (Zagreb, Croatia)}}
History
The mine was not damaged during the Skopje earthquake in 1963 but all but one of its engineers died in the earthquake.{{Cite web|url=https://okno.mk/node/30745|title=The damages caused by the earthquake (1) |work=okno.mk|accessdate=2022-02-06}} The Raduša mine went bankrupt in 1974. After the mine ceased operations, the mining waste dump site was transformed into Raduša Lake ('Takbol' Reservoir).{{cite web|url=http://www.zipinstitute.mk/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/ALMANAH-MKD-FULL.pdf|title=Фото алманах Сарај|language=mk|trans-title=Photo Almanac Saraj|accessdate=6 February 2022}}
Gallery
File:Објект во поранешниот рудник Радуша 2.jpg|Structure of the former Raduša mine
File:Објект во поранешниот рудник Радуша.jpg|Structure of the former Raduša mine
File:Поранешен управен објект во Рудник Радуша.jpg|Former administrative building
File:Објект во поранешниот рудник Радуша 3.jpg|Structure of the former Raduša mine
File:Рудник Радуша.jpg|Raduša mine
References
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