Transcript Document

Mineral Resources
and Resource Management
Resources: raw materials taken from
the environment and used by society
Types of mineral resources:
Metallic
ferrous (Fe and related metals)
nonferrous (gold, copper, etc.)
Non metallic
structural (stone, gravel, sand…)
industrial (salts, sulfur, asbestos…)
Ornamental
Energy (coal, uranium, oil….)
Mineral resources are nonrenewable
resources
Renewable resources can be replenished
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Our modern technological society is
very dependent on mineral resources.
The average person in an industrialized
nation uses about 2.3 times as much Al
and 1.3 times as much Cu as the typical
person did 30 years ago.
We use over 20 times more Al and 16 times
more Cu per person than people in
developing countries.
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Metal use
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U.S. Consumption Trends
Minerals
McKinney and Schoch 1998
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World consumption of minerals
has quintupled since 1945.
Some minerals have
been used to build
roads, buildings and
durable goods, but
much has gone into
disposable goods.
McKinney and Schoch 1998
Per capita consumption of mineral resources by Americans
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MINING
Brazilian Iron Mine,
Belo Horizonte
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Utah copper mine
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Australian coal mine
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A few definitions….
Overburden: soil and rock covering a mineral deposit-normally waste material
Tailings: ground up rock residue after the high-grade
ore has been extracted
Smelting: process of concentrating ore by heating to
produce crude metals
Slag: fused waste produced during removal of metal
from its ore
Refining: chemical purification
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Copper Mining and Production
McKinney and Schoch 1998
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A gold mine
with ore
processing
on site
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Problems:
 Environmental destruction
 Waste production
 Onsite pollution
 Offsite pollution
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Onsite and offsite
pollution
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Onsite and offsite pollution: Tanks are needed to trap
runoff or toxic solutions--leaks can happen
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The Holden Mine, Wash.
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Holden Copper Mine -- operated almost 20 years,
closed in 1957; within US Forest Service land
Produced: 212 million pounds of Copper
40 million pounds of Zinc
2 million pounds of Silver
600 thousand ounces of Gold
From: 10 million tons of ore
Ore shipped to ASARCO smelter, Tacoma
Smelter originally for lead, converted to copper in
1915; smelter closed in 1985. Now a superfund site.
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Asarco Smelter,
Tacoma
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54 ppm
1 ppm
1 ppm
Cd 7 ppm
Zn 5200 ppm
46 ppm
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Kam Kotia Cu/Zn Mine, Timmins Ontario (1943-1972)
Restoration of Kam Kotia mine underway using
Canadian Abandoned Mine Rehabilitation Funds
Est. cost of $20 million
Acid leachate
from Kam
Kotia Mine
(pH 2-3)
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Reshaping the land and replanting after iron mining in
Brazil--housing development and golf course will be built
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The General Mining Act of 1872
Miners can stake claims on public land and take minerals
for free
Claimholders can buy land ($2.50-4.00 per acre). Once
paid, the owner can do as they please with the land.
Nevada--$20 billion in minerals for $9000
Colorado--7000ac purchased for $42,000 and
resold for $37million
BLM estimate: $4 billion in minerals per year free
Mine industry: Metal mining is risky and expensive; US
could become dependent on foreign supplies
But coal, oil and gas pay royalties…
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Seattle PI, 11 Jun 2001
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Mineral Prices
Mineral prices are artificially low. Current mineral
prices include only extraction costs -- not the costs of
land, ore and other factors
Over the last few decades, known reserves for many
metals have grown as fast or faster than production.
Governments have traditionally subsidized mineral
production for several reasons:
export currency to reduce international debt
economic development
national security
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US stockpiles of
strategic metals
and metal ores.
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The Global Metal Trade
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Mineral resources are
nonrenewable resources
Two fundamental strategies for dealing with
mineral scarcity:
1. Increase supply
2. Decrease demand
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Resource Management
Conservation
Waste Reduction
(Input management)
(Output management)
Reuse and Recycle
Restoration
Reduce
Improved
Efficiencies
Substitutions
sources
Remediation
Used by
Society
Removal
sinks
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Principles of Resource Management
The 3 R’s: Reduce demand
(substitutions, greater efficiency)
Reuse
Recycle
Population x Consumption x Technologic = Environmental
per person
impact per unit impact of
(Affluence)
of consumption population
Px
A
x
T
=
I
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Metal/Mineral Resource Conservation
1. Increase supply
in
recycle old materials -- saves on resources and
some cases, saves energy
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Energy for production
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Metal/Mineral Resource Conservation
1. Increase supply
recycle old materials
2. Decrease demand
reuse goods
increase prices to reflect environmental costs
find alternatives or substitutes
eliminate need through technology or lifestyle
changes
produce durable goods
Producing and buying DURABLE GOODS is an
easy way to reduce demand for mineral resources
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Mineral Resources
Cheap
Resource
High use by
Society
Cheap to
Costly
Disposal
High extraction costs, and not all
environmental costs are included
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Key Points:
 mineral resources are nonrenewable--they include
metallic,
non-metallic, ornamental and energy
minerals
 environmental problems associated with mining include
on- and off-site pollution, environmental destruction
and solid waste production
 mineral prices are artificially low for a variety of
reasons such
as national security, economic
development
 resource conservation methods include recycling,
substitution, eliminating demand, and producing
more durable goods rather than
disposable goods
 the 3 R’s (reduce, reuse and recycle) can also reduce
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