Mining - Kyle Harwell
First, strip mining involves scraping away the top layer of the Earth in order to reach those minerals below sedimentary rock such as coal. This causes many problems because when the mining is happening, the beautiful landscape is being destroyed in the process. Industry often prefers strip mining because it requires less equipment, but it is responsible for the destruction of habitats and forests. Also, when the sediments come up from the land, they rundown stream with rivers and pollute the waterways. Strip mining can also cause dust and noise pollution when layers of rock is being taken away by heavy machinery.
Another way that humans and animals are being harmed by mining is through the process of subsurface mining. Many coal mines happen below the surface of the Earth which means that huge amounts of toxic minerals are able to be brought up to the Earth’s surface. This can cause many problems when these toxic chemicals come into contact with water and soil. The nutrients in the soil can become toxic and will produce many diseases to humans and animals. When freshwater comes in contact with toxic chemicals that come from underground mining, it causes a big issue called Acid Mine Drainage. Once the coal reaches streams and rivers, the surface of the water becomes orange and kills many plants in the process. Humans are affected by Acid Mine Drainage because the toxic chemicals seep into the drinking water making more diseases. This global issue affected South Africa when the population there did not stay aware of the problem which ended up costing many human lives.
There are many solutions to these problems such as closing down illegal and unregulated mines, but I wanted to know how I could help the world. I began to ask myself, how can I help this global issue as a high school teenager? What can I do to start making sure our water and air quality will not be affected by harmful mines? I began to research and found that we, as teenagers, can start using less harmful materials that contribute to the mine process such as plastic. By recycling used materials, mining companies can start to become more environment friendly and not be so harmful to the ecosystems of the world. I had no idea that mining had such a big, negative impact on the environment, but now I know how I can help the Earth maintain its beautiful landscape.
22 comments:
Interesting post. Another way toxic substances from mines get exposed to people is the fact that minerals are often used in cosmetics. It's really scary to think about how exposed we all are to such harmful substances. As teenagers, I think the first step to making a change is to simply raise awareness of the dangers of mining. I admire how you strive for a change.
Very good kyle, it was unbelievable how negatively our enviroment if affected by things we think of as totally normal.
Mining has been around for so long its crazy to see the negative affects still happening to this day. Those were very good points, thank you.
Mining has been such an important aspect to obtaining precious goods from out earth, but people aren’t aware of the destruction it does to the landscape. This blog does a good job in pointing out the different types of mining we use today and the specific effects it has on its environment. Teenagers are the upcoming generation that can make the longest impact on how sustainable our future world will be. If we can start be doing little things like recycling, it will make a huge difference in the long run.
Ever since I realized what mining is, I had never imagined the problems it causes to the environment are critical. It destroys many creatures' homes and damages the environment. Your blog does a great job of giving specific examples on how it affects the environment. After learning that recycling can play a major role in reducing the negative impact of mining, I will definitely make sure that my family and I recycle more often.
It's interesting that now we are in this whole new topic of geology, we are learning about things in depth that we thought so little of like mining. Everyone knows what mining is, but I personally didn't know the massive repercussions they have on society and the environment. Kids and teens are our future and it is important that we begin to make changes. Although they might not seem that significant, baby steps will lead us to conserve the nonrenewable resources we are wasting and to save the environment around us.
The blog was so informative! I love how you explain the negative impacts of mining and it shows how if we as humans just be more careful then our plante could be restored of its natural beauty. It is vital to help recycle and save the environment before it is too late.
This was really interesting! I knew a lot about the destruction mines cause in form of vegetation and habitat loss, however, I was not aware that it causes water pollution issues. Once I think about it, that makes perfect sense but I guess I just never really pondered it. I also never really thought about how my consumption patterns could be impacting the environment such as by participating in a demand for rare metals like gold and silver in jewelry. I believe that one way that we could all help with such an issue would be by lowering the demand for materials mined for and opt for more cheaper, environmentally friendly options, like you said. We could also raise awareness to the more human based crises formed by mining to try to influence people to join in. After all, people care most about people and I’m sure I’m not the only one who didn’t know about the impacts of mining on human populations.
We are so greedy with producing our energy these days that we do not see we are depleting our natural resources before they can be reformed. This blog was so interesting in that it explains how mining has negative impacts on the ecosystem surrounding it. Not only is mining depleting our natural resource, it is also destroying habitats beyond repair.
I always knew that mining caused harm to the environment, but I did not know that it also affected humans. The reprecussions that come from subsurface mining, such as toxic chemicals in water and other substances, are very dangerous to our communities. While obtaining precious materials is important for our society, is it worth the destruction of habitats and vegetation? I believe that restoring the locations of mining is a priority, and we should all take steps to prevent the loss of the environment.
It makes me so uncomfortable that these harmful substances end up in our drinking water, and I had no idea this was happening. I always just thought that we were disrupting habitats and species that live in those habitats.
Wow this blog was very fascinating because your blog had insightful information about the world of mining. I didn’t really know how mining worked, but now that I have read this blog I can say I know what strip mining is and how mining can cause destruction of habitats as well as cause pollution, dust and noise pollution to be exact. I also learned how the chemicals of the minerals can make the water and soil become toxic. This shows how we need to be more mindful when mining.
This blog was really informative and really showed how mining has been hurting the Earth for quite some time. It really shows how we need to change things and find better ways to get resources.
I agree, sometimes it can be hard for teenagers to think about ways we can help with environmental issues. If we all started to reuse materials more, this could decrease the demand for certain minerals that and decrease mining habits that damage the Earth.
I think one of the most important things teenagers can do is express our care for the environment through economic activity and exercising our rights to vote. The class of 2020 will all be able to vote in the next election, and it's important for us to take into consideration how candidates' views align with each of our individual hopes about protecting from further damage and alleviating the stresses of prior damages done to ecosystems. As far as mining goes, the simple act of refusing to partake (or at least limiting use) in supply and demand for those resources speaks volumes to corporations if the lack of business is impactful enough. These companies mine because people are willing to pay them to do so. If we take away the demand for these goods (or, like I said, reduce the demand), the mining will be less frequent, damaging, and prevalent.
I really enjoyed reading about the information you provided as it relates to our current unit ! While I was vastly aware of the negative consequences of habitat loss that mining causes, I was less aware about its contributions to air and water pollution. In regards to air pollution, mining likely contributes to the excess amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change. On the other hand, the water pollution caused by mining likely damages marine life and, potentially, the world’s resource of fresh water.
I thought your approach was interesting and very informative. Mining is one of the most controversial practices because, as you said, the massive ecologic damage. The debate that many are having surrounding mining also extends to electric vehicles. Electric vehicles need lithium in their batteries to function, but often lithium is mined in massive and destructive efforts. This is why mining is so important to discuss both in a manner of critique and necessity, and like you were saying talking about the effect as teenagers we have in our consumer power. Your piece on mining was quite good, and made me think of the trade offs in consumer choice and human need when it comes to mining.
The negative impacts on human society entailed by the mining process is nothing new in my eyes, however I do find it intriguing how humans have willingly taken part in self induced harm in exchange for the use of minerals and resources. It is very interesting to read about the different ways in which mining does negatively impact society, however the most obvious negative impact of mining is imposed upon those who are actually doing the mining. It is a dangerous process and shows the extent to which humans desire to take advantage of the convenience of fossil fuels.
While I always was farmiliar with the term “mining” I was never aware of the massive repercussions that come from it. It is also sad that many human lives were costed because of this poor way of obtaining resources. I like how you mention that there is a way to prevent, if not at least delay, certain environmental effects just by giving up things like plastic. An act like that might have the potential to save lives, not only human lives but animal lives as well.
This was a very interesting article. I thought that the only negative impact of mines was the depletion of natural resources, but never knew about all of these other environmental effects. Teenagers and people should be using more recyclable materials to discourage mining. Also, governments should do a better job of getting mining companies to follow safer standards and regulations.
It’s really sad to hear that mining is taken advantage of. People should be educated about the negative impacts of it since we mine too much. Soon, a lot more animals and humans could be affected by it and we need to reduce mining by reusing and recycling the materials and resources we use. As teenagers we need to spread awareness about mining and its impacts on the environment.
Us as people need to figure out how to not take advantage of the Earth and the resources. We need to limit the strip mining and figure out new ways to use resource and reuse them without destroying the Earth. We need to spread awareness too Adults and other teenagers to slow down mining and come up with better ideas for resources.
This article was very informative about the effects of mining. While it is important that regulations are placed on the mining industry, it is equally important that we as consumers make environmentally conscious decisions. By using less plastic and less products from mining, demand for those resources will go down, reducing the negative impact of mining on the environment.
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