Chapter 16Chapter 16

Minerals/MiningMinerals/Mining

General Mining Law of 1872General Mining Law of 1872

• Open up federal land for mining by anyone who stakes a claim– Their way to encourage settlement of the

west.– No provisions for environmental protection of

reclamation.

MineralsMinerals

• Mineral-

• Minerals found in Rocks => naturally formed aggregates or mixtures of minerals

• Ores -

– Two Types of ores

MineralsMinerals

• Metals-

• Nonmetallic-

• What are the most abundant minerals in earth’s crust

Minerals formed by 4 methods:Minerals formed by 4 methods:

1. Magmatic concentration-

-Examples

2. Hydrothermal process-

- Examples

Minerals formed by 4 methods:Minerals formed by 4 methods:

3. Sedimentation-

Examples –

4. Evaporation-

Examples -

Minerals discovered by photos: Minerals discovered by photos:

1.

2.

3.

4.

Extracting mineralsExtracting minerals

• Surface mining– Cheaper– Safer– More environmental

damage

• Overburden- over lying layers of soil & rock

• Spoils- waste rock• Tailing Piles- pile of spoils or spoil bank

• Subsurface mining– More expensive– More dangerous to

workers– Less environmental

damage

Open Pit MiningOpen Pit Mining

Open Pit EquipmentOpen Pit Equipment

Subsurface miningSubsurface mining

Modern Day Subsurface MiningModern Day Subsurface Mining

Types of Surface miningTypes of Surface mining

• Open pit/quarries• Strip – photos• Dragline/Mountaintop

removal• Photos of Dragline Mi

ning

DraglineDragline

Types of Subsurface miningTypes of Subsurface mining

• Shaft (directly down)– Coal Mine

• Slope

• Minerals removed from ores via processing– For metals, use process called smelting (melting at

high temp.) to produce molten metal & impurities (slag)

– Use a blast furnace

Mountain Top mining Mountain Top mining

• Video on mountain top mining in West Virginia

Problems w/ miningProblems w/ mining• Habitat destruction/soil

erosion• Water quality

degradation- acid mine drainage

• Water supply (mining uses lots of water)

• Air pollution (mineral processing)

• Energy use

Problems w/ miningProblems w/ mining

• Derelict lands-• Reclamation-• Surface Mining Control & Reclamation Act of

1977- regulated reclamation for surface coal mines (not regulated for any other kind of mine!)

• Ways to clean up:

-

-

Top 5 mineral ProducersTop 5 mineral Producers

1. U.S.

2. Canada

3. Australia

4. Russia Federation

5. South Africa

• U.S. uses ~ 20% of world metals

DefinitionsDefinitions

• Mineral reserves-

• Mineral resources-

• Total resources or the World reserve base =

• Life index of world reserves=

– Hard to predict because:• New discoveries of ore• Plastics/synthetics replace metals• consumption/economic changes

New Deposits New Deposits

• Antarctica– Antarctic Treaty of 1961- limits activities to peaceful scientific

uses

• Madrid Protocol (Environment Protection Protocol to Antarctic Treaty) 1990– Moratorium on mineral exploration & development for minimum

of 50yrs.

• Ocean– Sea water (salts) or seafloor (manganese nodules)

• UN Convention on Law of the Sea (1994)– One focus was on sea mining– Not binding for territorial waters (12 mi. out)– Only for international minings

How to Extend ReservesHow to Extend Reserves

• Conservation– Reuse– Recycle

• Find substitute

• Sustainable manufacturing- reducing waste in manufacturing

• Dematerialization- decreased in water weight of object w/ same or better lifetime