ENVIRONMENTAL MINING ISSUES

Acid Mine Drainage(AMD)

Pyrite (any sulfide) + Water = sulfuric acid

FeS2 + H2O H2SO4 + Fe Aka sulfide mining Sulfuric acid lowers the pH Happens in both surface and

underground mines Metal (Cu, Zn) or Coal mines

Yellow BoySoluble Iron

Yellow boy in a stream receiving acid drainage from surface coal mining

Berkeley Pit, MontanaAbandon Copper Mine

MINE WASTE

Waste makes up a larger % of the mine than the ore

More so in surface mines

Sand and Gravel mines- least amount of waste

Hard Rock mines- most amount of waste

What’s the problem with MINE WASTE?

Piles are an eyesore

Acid runoff

Tailings pile

Eagle Project Nickel/copper mine

in Marquette, MI People are against

it- BIG TIME! Latest news:

Mining will begin in 2013-2023

Nickel is used in stainless steel and hybrid batteries

What are citizens worried about? collapse of the roof of the mine, which lies

directly beneath the Salmon Trout River. acid mine drainage (see information on Sulfuric

Acid Mine Drainage below) air pollution from a 50-foot tall stack (annually

"at least 20 tons of dust containing sulfides and metals")

loud noise levels from mining and rock crushing at the site

80 ore truck trips a day impacting the region's roads (including spreading acid dust on roadsides)

video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5t-TrOCibjk&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1&safe=active

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdefD_SBiL4&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1&safe=active

Other Water Issues Mining lowers water table

Must pump water out to keep mine dry Usually surface mines

May decrease water quality Lead causes neurological damage Mercury can cause kidney problems

Itai-Itai disease Caused from

cadmium mining waste dumped in rivers and then used for irrigation of crops

Japan, 1950 “Ouch-ouch”

disease; extremely painful; attacks bones

MINE SUBSIDENCE

Mainly from underground or solution mining

Land above mine sinks

Wink Sink, TX1980Salt

Measuring subsidence from satellites

AIR POLLUTION

Dust from tailings May be reduced by:

Spray on latex coating Spray on water revegitate

Reclamation Act of 1977 Must prove that land can be reclaimed

before permits are issued restore to “useful” land tax of $.35/ton

Posting a Reclamation Bond: To ensure that the disturbed lands will be reclaimed, the government often requires that the miner set aside some or all of the amount of money needed to reclaim the disturbed lands.

Asbestos mining Carcinogen-

mesothelioma Fibrous group of

minerals Imbedded in lung

tissue Canada

COAL MINING Fires

Can spontaneously combust from coal dust

Black Lung disease Coal dust gets

embedded in lung tissue

1500 people/year Usually from older

mines when regulations weren’t in place