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Unit 3. a supply of anything gathered at maturity and stored. How we obtain Earth’s resources: I. Harvesting. 1.5 billion people in the world still use wood as their primary source of fuel. Leads to deforestation. Results in erosion of topsoil. a. Wood.
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a supply of anything gathered at maturity and stored How we obtain Earth’s resources: I. Harvesting
1.5 billion people in the world still use wood as their primary source of fuel. • Leads to deforestation. • Results in erosion of topsoil. a. Wood
Peat spongy light material. Several thousands of years old. Peat is formed in a bed of an ancient bog. Takes thousands of years to form A non-renewable resource….why? b. Peat
Disturb vegetation and soils to get fuel Require roads, clearing and leveling an area to make a drill pad. Pipelines are needed to transport the gas from the wells. Wastes are produced. a. Natural gas b. oil
Removal of a mineral from Earth’s ground. Mineral a solid substance that is found in nature and consists of a single element or compound. III. Mining
Coal is a non-renewable resource It has to be mined Burning coal releases carbon dioxide (CO2) and other toxins Coal ash is toxic a. Coal
Open-pit mining machines are used to dig large holes in the ground and remove the ore (mineral containing rock). Strip mining huge bulldozers and other machines are used to clear away large strips of Earth’s surface. Surface mining methods
At 215 m deep and 1.6 km in circumference, the “Big Hole” at the Kimberley Mine in South Africa is the largest hand-dug excavation in the world. By the time the mine closed in 1914, 22.5 million tons of rock had yielded almost 3,000 kg of diamonds.
- Mineral is deep underground. • Less disruptive to the Earth’s surface. Subsurface mining
Disruption of the land • Land erosion and land slides • Pollution and wastes • Very toxic and ponds created for these wastes often leak. Effects of mining
Orange slime — containing iron, cadmium, aluminum, mercury, zinc and lead — coats the walls of the mine 4 inches thick. A former waste pond at the Penn mine during a tour of the mine and the polluted water source near Keystone, Colo.
Reclamation requiring mining companies to restore mined land.*surface mining control and reclamation act of 1977* Responsible Mining