The Wheal Jane Site is located at Baldhu near Truro in Cornwall and is the site of a former mining operation for metalliferous minerals. The site is shared by both the Wheal Jane Group who are responsible for the remediation of the former mining waste facility known as the Clemows Valley Tailings Dam and Brownfield Investments Ltd who look after the property within the Wheal Jane Earth Science Park and are landlords to the various companies that make up the community within the Wheal Jane Site.
The site now includes, amongst other facilities, a mine water treatment plant run by John F Hunt on behalf of Coal authority and DEFRA, a soil waste treatment facility run by UK Remediation and Wheal Jane Ltd.’s Tailings Dam facility, which accepts construction and demolition waste used to restore and remediate the contaminated land left by its industrial past . Many of the different companies onsite have been born from the Cornish mining era and continue to service the needs of this industry worldwide, with its mix of office, laboratories and workshop space, the Wheal Jane site is known for its history and respected for its current knowledge in Mining worldwide.
Following the mine’s closure in 1992, the mill at Wheal Jane continued to process South Crofty’s ore up until its closure in 1998. A vision was created by Bernard Ballard and David Giddings following a management buyout also in 1998 for what the future of the site would look like, this was called the Wheal Jane Masterplan. Over the following years this vision was created and looked at the potential for a flagship 21st century sustainable business park. The Masterplan was created to transform the disused tin mine into an environmentally pioneering earth science cluster, attracting international mining and minerals consultancies. Through harnessing existing renewable energy resources, we hope to create a blueprint for a more sustainable Cornwall, as well as boosting the local economy and creating more jobs in the area. The Masterplan was adopted by the local authority in 2011 which has become Brownfield Investments ultimate guide for its future developments.
The activities and developments which have taken place on the site over the last twenty years, and our plans and vision for the future of the site, with the support of local agencies such as the LEP, Cornwall Council and our tenants are being progressively completed, giving a high standard of commercial premises.
The first of two projects to be completed at Wheal Jane were the office extension and refurbishment at the site entrance which was completed in 2014. The second was the extension and upgrading of the former mine offices and workshops in the headworks area of the site which was completed in the autumn of 2015. Both these projects created BREEAM standard office and laboratory facilities to our tenants.
Sadly, Bernard and David are no longer with us and are unable to share in the achievements they set the foundations for, although the current directors will ensure their memories will be embedded in future developments of the site.