Minerals and Mining

minerals

naturally occurring solid chemical elements or inorganic compounds

recycling

there is some capacity for _________ of minerals, but most of the time it’s not feasible

3.3 pounds

we use __________ of minerals throughout our lifetime

geologic tools

use of _________ to identify where minerals are located

lithosphere

mineral mining is the removal of minerals (typically as rock) from _________

ore

metals are found as ________ (natural occurrence of rock or sediment containing minerals that can be economically extracted)

magnetic fields

they can use ___________ to get information whether certain minerals are present or not

uneven

there is _________ distribution of these substances across the map

conflicts

if we need things like titanium or cobalt, we need to be able to make arrangements around the globe, which can cause ________

habitat loss

open pit mining causes large scale __________

acid drainage

open pit mining leads to _______, which leads to the formation of leachate

water

opening mining pits can fill with _________

placer mining

method of mining where they sift through materials in riverbeds, separating out heavier materials of value 

debris

placer mining washes large amounts of ________ into waterways 

pit mining

in ________ they start at the top and get deeper and deeper

surface mining

in _________, what you are interested in is close to the surface, they just remove the top layer of stuff and then remove the strip of the minerals of interest and then continue to dig down to the next level

overburden

all the material that is removed during mining is called the _________

seams

removing the minerals becomes easier when you expose the __________

subsurface mining

_________ goes a lot deeper because the minerals of interest are at a greater depth

mine, horizontal

in subsurface mining, they drill _______ shafts and ________ shafts

shafts

miners build ________ to maximize exposure to the seams you are interested in

Centralia

town in PA that was a mining town where the underground mines caught fire and the fire is still burning today

Berkely pit

started as an open pit mine and water started seeping in because they hit groundwater level. They pushed the water into the neighboring reservoir and the mine was shut down and the pH of this water is 2 and the temperature is very cold. not favorable conditions

Bingham Canyon Mine

one of the largest copper mines in the world but was shut down because it experienced several significant landslides

mountaintop removal

removal of all vegetation and topsoil; blasting of rock

overburden

_________ is placed back on mountaintop after mineral extraction and/or dumped into adjacent valleys 

habitat, water, soil

mountaintop removal causes large-scale _______ destruction, ________ pollution, and _______ erosion 

human health and social

mountaintop removal causes _________ and _________ impacts

solution mining

they drill deep holes into a particular area then inject a solution that dissolves the minerals that it comes in contact with and then sucks solution up and extract minerals from that solution 

high

solution mining is used in areas where mineral concentration is ___________

smelting

method of metal processing where they heat ore to a high temperature to separate metal from surrounding minerals 

water and energy

metal processing requires large quantities of ________ and ________

air pollutants

metal processing emits __________

soil and water

metal processing contaminates ________ and _________ through tailings and potential failures of surface impoundments

tailings

residual materials

retention ponds

processor companies have large _______ where they dump tailings

expensive

it is very _________ to try to clean retention ponds

General Mining Act of 1872

encourages prospecting for minerals on federal owned land

Surface Mining Control Reclamation Act

mandates restoration efforts and companies must post bonds to cover reclamation before mining is approved. companies can no longer just walk away from mines and abandon them