Mining Flashcards
what is mining
the extraction of minerals and metals from earth
importance of mining
Bronze Age - sophisticated
Iron Age - steel replace bronze, essential for blades
19th century - plows
types of mining
- underground (deep)
- surface mines (ruins land)
- placer mining (eg.rivers)
- in situ (leach)
are we running low on materials
yes - end of ipad
what are rare earth element s used for and whats the issue
in short supply, needed for alot of high tech things
where is there alot of minerals
not much in uk (empire helped us)
australia and china have alot
why is china the place alot of tech is made
cus it has alot of rare earth materials
USA coal mining
- lots of type of coal
- associated with cretaceous period
- can have bad stuff in like sulphur
- america has high density mining
are we running out of copper?
yes. and we use it for alot
- amount extracted is increasing but the amount discovered cunt keep up
what year is peak production of fossil fuels
2025
when will coal production keep rising till
2050
will we run out of oil?
no, but it’ll get so expensive that it won’t be used as much. so companies are moving to alternatives
how ling will alluminium last
510+yrs
how long will iridium last?
13yrs
what does mining impact on
- envt
- communities
- livilhood
- health and afety
- cuture
- corruption
- human rights
- employment
is most mined material dumped locally?
yes
when did mine disasters peak?
1905
is mine waste dangerous
yes. often toxic, corrosive or radioactive
impact of uncontrolled release of mine waste
dams fail
when did wheal Jane close
1991
after wheal Jane was closed
shafts flooded
contaminate water
what does contemporary mining focus on
extraction of lower grade ores
how much human induced erosion sediment and suspended solids are there in the water
25billion
2 approaches to be adopted to rehabilitate contaminated land
remove of contaminants
modify local envt
restoring a mined site
underground - mange water and treat chemically if need
surface - land sculpture, soil establishment, vegetation
historic minig
hazards. empires success due to it. occurred since prehistory. waste has accumulated. past methods were less efficient. toxic elements were used to extract. no envtl laws
what is in high conc in cornwall
arsenic
what % of solids exceeded national standard of 37ppm in cornwall
69%
