La Découverte, Surface mine in Decazeville, France

La Découverte is a surface mine in Decazeville featuring large-scale earthworks that reshaped the local landscape. The site displays the scale of coal extraction through its vast pit and remaining industrial structures from the mining era.

Opened in 1892, the mine was worked underground until 1965, when the Jeanneney plan to cut French coal output led to strikes in Decazeville from 1961 and a national strike in 1963. The underground shafts closed in 1966, while the open pit operated until 2001.

Mining shaped Decazeville's identity for decades, leaving visible marks on how people lived and worked in this region. The site shows how an entire community depended on coal extraction and later had to rebuild itself.

The pit measures 3.7 km by 2.5 km, so the opposite rim lies far beyond walking reach; the lake at its base is about 25 m deep and not meant for swimming. The headframe of the central shaft, listed as a monument historique since 17 December 2019, is the landmark to locate first. The site was used for a July fireworks festival until 2017.

The pit lake is about 25 metres deep, and the site hosted a fireworks festival every July until 2017. The headframe of the central shaft, listed as a monument historique on 17 December 2019, still stands at the mine.