86-97 Mining

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Mining

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40 Terms

1

Mining

the systematic removal of rock, soil, or other material to remove the minerals of economic interest minerals occur in low concentrations, concentrated sources and must be found before mining

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2

Metal

an element that is lustrous, opaque, and malleable
and can conduct heat and electricity

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3

Ore

a mineral or grouping of minerals from which we
extract metals, economically valuable metals (ex. copper, iron, lead, gold, aluminum)

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4

Processing minerals has environmental costs, most methods are

water and energy intensive

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5

Chemical reactions and heating to extract metals from ores emit

air pollution

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6

Tailings

ore left over after metals have been extracted

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7

Tailings effects

  • Pollutes soil and water and may contain heavy metals or acids (cyanide, sulfuric acid)

  • Water evaporates from tailings ponds, which may leach pollutants into the environment

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8

Nonmetallic minerals include

sand, gravel, phosphates, limestone, and gemstones

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9

Phosphates provide

fertilizer

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10

Blood diamonds

mined and sold to fund, prolong, and intensify wars in Angola and other areas

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11

Substances are

mined for fuel

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12

Substances that are mined for fuel

  • Uranium for nuclear power

  • Coal, petroleum, natural gas are not minerals (they are organic), but they are also extracted from the Earth

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13

Surface mining

removal of large portion of soil and rock called overburden to access ore underneath

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14

Strip mining (type of surface mining)

layers of soil and rock are removed to expose the resource

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15

Overburden

overlying soil and rock that is removed by
heavy machinery (after extraction, each strip is refilled with the overburden)

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16

What do overburdens do?

  • Used for coal, oil sands, sand, gravel

  • Destroys natural communities over large areas and triggers erosion

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17

Acid drainage

sulfide minerals form sulfuric acid and flow into
waterways

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18

Wastes include

soil and rocks that are moved to gain access to ore

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19

Slag and tailings are waste that remain when

the minerals have been removed from the ore

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20

Coal mining can

destroy habitats, contaminate ground water, release dust particles and methane

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21

As coal reserves get smaller it is necessary to

use subsurface mining which is expensive

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22

Subsurface mining

Accesses deep pockets of a mineral through tunnels and shafts

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23

What comes from subsurface mining

Zinc, lead, nickel, tin, gold, diamonds, phosphate, salt, coal

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24

The most dangerous form of mining

Subsurface mining (ex. dynamite blasts, collapsed tunnels and toxic fumes and coal dust)

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25

Subsurface mining effects

Acid drainage, polluted groundwater, and sinkholes damage roads, homes, etc.

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26

Open Pit Mining

Used with evenly distributed minerals (ex. terraced and copper, iron, gold, diamonds, coal)

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27

Quarry

open pits for clay, gravel, sand, stone (ex. limestone,
granite, marble, slate)

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28

In quarries huge amounts of rock are removed to get

small amounts of minerals

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29

Quarry cons

  • Habitat loss, aesthetic degradation, acid drainage

  • Abandoned pits fill with toxic water

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30

Placer mining

Using running water, miners sift through material in riverbeds (ex. Coltan miners, California’s Gold Rush of 1849)

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31

Placer mining is used for

gold and gems

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32

Placer mining cons

  • Debris washed into streams makes
    them uninhabitable for wildlife

  • Disturbs stream banks, causes
    erosion

  • Harms riparian plant communities

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33

Mountaintop removal

Entire mountaintops are blasted off for coal and the waste is dumped into valleys

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34

Valley filling

dumping rock and debris into valleys

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35

Mountaintop removal is

economically efficient

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36

Examples of Mountaintop removal

Appalachian Mountains in the eastern US

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37

Mountaintop removal cons

  • Degrades and destroys vast areas

  • Pollutes streams, deforests areas, erosion,
    mudslides, flash floods

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38

Governments in developed countries require companies to

reclaim (restore) surface-mined sites (Other nations (Congo) have no regulations at all)

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39

Reclamation

aims to bring a site to a condition similar to its pre-
mining condition (ex. Remove structures, replace overburden, replant vegetation)

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40

U.S. 1977 Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act

mandates restoration (companies must post bonds to ensure restoration)

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