Critical Analysis of the UNESCO Heritage Mining Area of Roşia Montană

Abstract Roșia Montană mining area has sparked numerous controversies and generated a series of protests, ultimately leading to the rejection of a large-scale mining project carried out in a public-private partnership and the inclusion of this area in the UNESCO heritage. In this article, we do not intend to judge the interests of a political nature or some businesspersons. Still, an objective analysis of this field takes into account some key aspects related to the level of socio-economic development, natural mining, historical heritage and culture, historical pollution, and development potential (through tourism, resumption of mining activities, or other viable solutions). As a tool to quantify and conclude the presented aspects, we used a well-known method, namely the SWOT analysis.