Protecting the Environment while Mining

Mining companies supply the metals and minerals that humanity uses for shelter, survival, work and pleasure, as well as the expansion into space and interplanetary endeavors. At the same time, they want to conduct this business in an environmentally responsible manner. Yet mining by its very nature requires that land, air and water systems be disturbed. While the economic benefits of the industry are as important today as they ever were, the public has become increasingly concerned about the impact that mining is having on the natural environment.

The metals and industrial minerals that mining produces can find their way into the environment and become pollutants. The byproducts that occur with the metals, such as sulphur and arsenic, can be dangerous to the environment if they are released.

The fuels and chemicals the industry uses to do its job are also potential pollutants. Mining creates and employs hazardous substances that must be handled with care.

Other pollutants produced by the mining industry are of concern more to the workers in the industry than to the public at large. Dusts, for example, which are often hygienically hazardous, are produced by many mining activities. Noise, too, is a form of pollution of concern for those in the work environment. In uranium mines, the products of radioactive decay are a major concern.

The challenge for companies is to find, extract and process mineral resources with the least possible disruption to the environment. To meet this challenge, they adopt a broad range of protective measures, including: sensitive treatment of the land during exploration; environmental and aesthetic management of land under development; environmentally sustainable production procedures during the mining and metallurgical processes; and decommissioning and reclamation practices aimed at restoring the land.

Environmental performance and accountability are important issues for mining companies, their share holders and the public. Most companies now include a discussion of environmental issues in their annual reports so as to keep share-holders and the public informed about the steps they are taking to protect the land, water and air quality at their operations.

Steps in Environmental Planning for Mines.