Longyearbyen was put on the map with the opening of the first coal mine in 1905. Ironically. Norway is powered almost 100% with hydropower so the coal from the modern mine (located 60 miles away) is sent to Germany and Holland. Svalbard coal is the most profitable mining operation in Europe. The coal was formed 100 million years ago when this land was closer to the equator and the swampy, warm climate led to an abundance of plant and animal life piling up under sediment layers after they died.
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