NauruThe once stunning tropical scenery of the small island state of Nauru formerly known as Pleasan

NauruThe once stunning tropical scenery of the small island state of Nauru formerly known as Pleasant Island currently resembles a moonscape. What looks like a natural karst formation shows the leftovers of intense phosphate mining on the pacific island.At the beginning of the 20th century Nauru’s rich near surface deposits were discovered and mining made it one of the richest states in the world in the 1970s. But soon the reserves of the little island became exhausted and left its environment seriously harmed. Main parts of the country became uninhabitable.The phosphate deposits are basically fossilized bird poo that accumulated over the years and developed within the coral pinnacles. The material made for an excellent fertilizer and was scooped out of the coral ground. The mining activities in combination with further natural erosion left behind a visually stunning but useless landscape.XandiImage Credits:http://bit.ly/2a60AtZhttp://bit.ly/2aaCjibSources:http://bit.ly/2aC9sXJhttps://www.lonelyplanet.com/nauru -- source link

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