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Spent a day nosing around the Malakoff Diggins State Historic Park, in the Sierra Nevada foothills in California. You might be interested to know that this is the site of the USA’s very first environmental law, it was issued by the federal government.

Malakoff Diggins was home to the country’s largest hydraulic gold mining operation. Using high pressure jets, huge sections of the country side were literally washed away, in an effort to get at the gold. The subsequent release of the mud, gravel and debris clogged streams and major rivers all the way from these foothills to the San Francisco Bay! Sacramento farmers complained and filed a law suit and in 1884 a law was passed declaring hydraulic mining to be illegal. Today, there is a mighty big “hole” in the cliffs, which has, thankfully, been reclaimed by Mother Nature.

Malakoff Diggins can lay claim to another first. In 1880, electric lights were installed in the mine and the world’s first long distance telephone line was developed to service the mine.

What you see in today’s picture is one of the few buildings left of the old town. It is the main office of the Historic Park.

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