Chapter 19. Chapter 19: Mineral Resources

What are the environmental and social impacts of mineral mining and processing?

Why You Should Care

In developed countries, mineral resources mines are regulated to minimize air and water pollution, protect the miners’ health, and provide a safe workplace. Developing countries may or may not have the same level of protection, especially countries in turmoil (blood diamonds from central Africa, for example).

Mining also creates pollution in less-obvious ways with drifting dust, mountains of waste rock, and precipitation trickling through rock layers that creates toxic water pollution. Once removed, the smelting of the ores releases toxic air pollution. Since many of the ores contain heavy metals, these pollutants are especially dangerous and containment is more expensive.

The impacts are not limited to just environmental ones. Since the profits from these mines are so high, mining companies have violated human rights in numerous cases. Protesters are intimidated, threatened, or killed by agents of the mines, government, or local gangs. Labor rights are ignored, as children and adults work in unsafe mines or handle toxic refining chemicals improperly. The cycle can be broken by recycling already mined metals and minerals.