According to Mining News Pro - Abandoned coal mines – of which there are 150,000 in the UK – could be turned into underground greenhouses, which would mean crops would be unaffected by climate change and extreme weather, the greenhouses would require less energy for heating, and they would also reduce the burning of fossil fuels from farming machinery.

Disused shafts could be fitted with specialist LED lighting designed specifically for certain crops and they will be grown in water-based solutions, opposed to soil, to optimise yields.

Stable temperature of the subterranean farms and absolute protection from pests and disease would allow for up to ten harvests per mine, the researchers claim.

Professor Siffa Riffat from the Faculty of Engineering has been promoting the project.

http://www.miningnewspro.com/en/News/315075/Abandoned underground mines for farming?