Mineral Exploitation

• Mineral exploitation


  the quantity of exploitable deposits that exists in the crust of every mineral is much greater that we could realistically use however most of the deposits are in inaccessible places or as purities that are too low for current economic exploitation
• Lasky's principle


  States that in general, as the purity of a mineral decreases the amount of mineral present increases exponentially
• Environmental impacts of mineral exploitation

  Land conflict

  Land take

  Habitat loss
• Land conflict


  Minerals are in a set place so the location where you will extract the mineral may be in an area owned by someone esle
• Land take


  Lots of land is required to mine minerals as it also included space for associated buildings, access to roads, overburden dumping, soil dumping and a buffer zone
• Habitat loss


  -removing animals and transplanting species to move them to less threatened areas is attempted but rarely successful

  -especially is the animals are hard to catch or habitat requirements can't be met
• Habitat Restoration


  done when mining has stopped and can create new habitats

  is usually a requirement when singing a contract to mine somewhere
• Loss of Amenity


  mining changes the landscape, aesthetic problems
• Positive of Amenity


  can increase after mining is finished
• Dust pollution


  Blasting and vehicle movement creates dust which moves into atmosphere
• Solution to dust pollution


  -water spray is used to make dust heavier
• Noise pollution


  Created by rock blasting and vehicles
• Solution to noise pollution


  embankments or 'baffle mound' built to absorb and deflect noise
• Turbid Drainage Water


  Suspended soils can reduce light into rivers and lakes

  Sediments can also cover and kill plants and animals
• Solutions to Turbid drainage water


  -reduced by having sedimentation lagoons, water stand still so sediment sinks
• Spoil


  solid waste material left behind by mining

  Could contain: over burden, unwanted extracted materials, soils wastes from chemical processing
• Spoil Disposal Problems


  -aesthetics, does not look pretty

  -stability, lack of surface compaction can reduce stability and lead to erosion, landslides

  -leachate, rainwater percolating through spoil can dissolve toxic metals and sulfides that produce acidic leachate solutions
• Spoil Disposal solutions


  -aesthetic, landscaping to look natural and blend

  -stability, add soils and plant trees and vegetation
• Mine Site restoration


  New uses may be found for sites used previously for mining or mineral processing

  -if ground is stable- urban development

  -if ground is fertile and not too steep- agriculture
• Positives of underground mining


  -no dust pollution

  -reduced noise pollution

  -visual pollution reduced

  -little land take/ habitat loss
• Negatives of underground mining


  -expensive construction

  -risk of collapse

  -flooding

  -expense of pumping out water

  -gas released by materials (explosion)