AP Environmental Science Unit 5

Crustal Abundance

The average concentration of an element in Earth’s crust.

Ore

A concentrated accumulation of minerals from which economically valuable materials can be extracted.

Metal

An element with properties that allows it to conduct electricity and heat energy, and to perform other important functions.

Reserve

The known quantity of a resource that can be economically recovered.

Strip Mining

The removal of strips of soil and rock to expose ore, usually coal or sand.

Mining Spoil/Tailing

Unwanted waste material created during mining.

Open-pit Mining

A mining technique that uses a large visible pit or hole in the ground, commonly used for copper mines.

Mountaintop Removal

A mining technique in which the entire top of a mountain is removed with explosives.

Placer Mining

The process of looking for minerals, metals, and precious stones in river sediments.

Subsurface Mining

Mining techniques used when the desired resource is more than 328 feet (100 meters) below the surface of the Earth.

Mining Law of 1872

Focused on the mining of silver, copper, and gold ores as well as fuels including natural gas and oil on federal land.

Impervious Surface

A surface like concrete that is unable to infiltrate water, creating run-off.

Saltwater Intrusion

Excessive groundwater withdrawal near the coast lowering water table pressure, allowing saltwater to seep into groundwater.

Urbanization

The process of people moving from rural areas to cities.

Urban Sprawl

The expansion of urban areas into rural areas, often causing environmental issues.

Permeable Pavement

Decreases runoff, thereby decreasing pollutants carried into storm drains.

Clear Cutting

A method of harvesting trees that involves removing all of the trees within an area.

Selective Cutting

The method of harvesting trees that involves the removal of single trees or a relatively small number of trees among many.

Ecologically Sustainable Forestry

An approach to removing trees from forests in ways that do not negatively affect the viability of other trees.

Prescribed Burn

A fire deliberately set under controlled conditions to reduce the accumulation of dead biomass on a forest floor.

Mining Law of 1977

The act insures that land be minimally disturbed during the mining process and reclaimed after mining is complete.