Environmental Consequences of Mining

1. Environmental Consequences of Mining Presentation by: Gabbi, Pedro and Jacob

2. What is mining? • Mining is the extraction of minerals and other geological materials from the earth. Photograph of a U.S. coal strip-mine

3. Ok that’s great..now how does mining contribute to pollution? • All methods of mining contribute to pollution in some way, shape, or form. Mining adversely effects air, water, and land (soil) quality. Inside an underground mine

4. How does mining effect: Air quality?

5. Cause • Particulate matter is released in surface mining when overburden is stripped from the site and stored or returned to the pit. When the soil is removed, vegetation is also removed, exposing the soil to the weather, causing particulates to become airborne through wind erosion.

6. Effect • Because particulate matter is often composed of such noxious materials like arsenic, cadmium, and lead, it may have an adverse impact on human health by contributing to respiratory illnesses such as emphysema. Particulate matter can also otherwise be ingested or absorbed into the skin.

7. How does mining effect.. Water quality? Acid mine drainage is just one of many devastating consequences of mining

8. Cause • Mining operations use large amounts of fresh water to process recovered ore. The result is  the resulting mine effluent is typically a stew of hazardous acid-generating sulphides, toxic heavy metals, waste rock impoundments and water—and it is often deposited nearby in large free-draining piles where it can pollute land and water supplies for decades to come. When this waste water drains into local streams and aquifers, it can kill living organisms and render formerly pristine local waters unsafe to swim in or drink. 

9. Effect • When waste water from mining operations drains into local streams and aquifers, it can kill living organisms and make local water unsafe to swim, bathe in or drink. Increased sediment levels in streams are also a consequence; this reduces the productivity of fisheries while limiting the availability of irrigation sources.

10. How does mining effect.. Soil quality?

11. Cause • Surface mining, is a common form of mining which is particularly damaging to the environment. It can erode soil and thus diminish its fertility. The first step in surface mining is to eliminate all vegetation and upturn the soil in the area.

12. Cause (cont..) • In the final steps of surface mining, the operator of the mine dumps the overburden that was removed during the mining process back onto the area then proceeds to grade and compact it. The overburden may likely contain toxic materials such as acid or alkaline producing materials.

13. Effect • Mining disturbs and often destroys crucial microorganisms in the topsoil. Soil may be damaged if the topsoil is redistributed with a mix of subsoils, leading to a dilution of matter in the surface soil. Additionally, overburden which has been dumped on adjacent land that has not been properly prepared may introduce toxic materials to the soil.

14. Works Cited • "Mining and Water Pollution." Political Affairs. Earth Talk, 14 Mar. 2011. Web. 17 Nov. 2012. <http://www.politicalaffairs.net/mining-and-water-pollution/>. • "Pollution Issues." Mining. Web. 18 Nov. 2012. <http://www.pollutionissues.com/Li-Na/Mining.html>. • Squillace, Mark. "The Environmental Effects of Strip Mining." N.p., 2009. Web. 19 Nov. 2012.<https://sites.google.com/site/stripmininghandbook/chapter-2-1>