Although the historiography regarding mines is substantial, the environmental impact of underground mining has not yet been fully examined. The French Revolution was a crucial moment in the formalization of the legal code for mining; in fact, this codification was part of a long-term process dating from the first decades of the eighteenth century. Mining concessions, introduced in 1744, committed France to a dynamic of resource development that sparked numerous disputes. While conflicts dealt mainly with subsoil ownership, the environmental consequences became the subject of local debates. Challenging or promoting concessions thus affords insights into a deeper understanding of such environmental effects. During the Revolution, the laws of 1791 and 1810 represented special moments for examining the relationship between French society and its environment: the regulation of mining resources that followed favoured industrialism.