From Moonscape To Lake District: East Germany's Coal Mines

JAENSCHWALDE, GERMANY - AUGUST 20: Steam rises from cooling towers at the Jaenschwalde coal-fired power plant on August 20, 2010 at Jaenschwalde, Germany. The Jaenschwalde power plant is one of the biggest single producers of CO2 gas in Europe. The area of northern Saxony and southern Brandenburg is scarred with active and former lignite coal mines that feed local power plants like Jaenschwalde, and a large-scale project is underway to flood the massive pits and convert them into lakes for tourism. The Lausitz and Middle German Mining and Administration Association (LMBV) is converting a total of 51 former mines into lakes, and a similar project is planned for former mines in neighboring Poland. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)