Berkeley Pit

The Berkeley Pit is a former open pit copper mine in the western United States, located in Butte, Montana. It is one mile long by one-half mile wide, with an approximate depth of 1,780 feet. It is filled to a depth of about 900 feet with water that is heavily acidic, about the acidity of Coca-Cola, lemon juice, or gastric acid. As a result, the pit is laden with heavy metals and dangerous chemicals that leach from the rock, including copper, arsenic, cadmium, zinc, and sulfuric acid.The mine was opened in 1955 and operated by the Anaconda Copper Mining Company, and later by the Atlantic…