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Concept
Environmental effects of mining
Summary
Environmental effects of mining can occur at local, regional, and global scales through direct and indirect mining practices. Mining can cause in erosion, sinkholes, loss of biodiversity, or the contamination of soil, groundwater, and surface water by chemicals emitted from mining processes. These processes also affect the atmosphere through carbon emissions which contributes to climate change. Some mining methods (lithium mining, phosphate mining, coal mining, mountaintop removal mining, and sand mining) may have such significant environmental and public health effects that mining companies in some countries are required to follow strict environmental and rehabilitation codes to ensure that the mined area returns to its original state.
Erosion of exposed hillsides, mine dumps, tailings dams and resultant siltation of drainages, creeks and rivers can significantly affect the surrounding areas, a prime example being the giant Ok Tedi Mine in Papua New Guinea. Soil erosion can decrease the water availability for plant growth, resulting in a population decline in the plant ecosystem. Soil erosion is mainly caused by excessive rainfall, lack of soil management and chemical exposure from mining. In wilderness areas, mining may cause destruction of ecosystems and habitats, and in areas of farming, it may disturb or destroy productive grazing and croplands.
A sinkhole at or near a mine site is typically caused from the failure of a mine roof from the extraction of resources, weak overburden or geological discontinuities. The overburden at the mine site can develop cavities in the subsoil or rock, which can infill with sand and soil from the overlying strata. These cavities in the overburden have the potential to eventually cave in, forming a sinkhole at the surface. The sudden failure of earth creates a large depression at the surface without warning, this can be seriously hazardous to life and property. Sinkholes at a mine site can be mitigated with the proper design of infrastructure such as mining supports and better construction of walls to create a barrier around an area prone to sinkholes.
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