Mining in Spain Mining in Asturias and León

The Spanish mining industry Today, mining brings in about 10 billion Euros to Spain each year 80% of the raw materials mined in Spain are industrial rocks and minerals like roofing slate and red clay, marble, granite, celestite, gypsum and sepiolite 1% are metallic minerals, like iron and copper 19% are energy minerals, like coal

Asturias and León Coal miningSteel production UuNOJzw&list=PLjcmYvzbDlmS9dSM_Tlh EWx1ntNxRyW-Z qonyoKA In the times of Francisco Franco's dictatorship, from , Asturias and León was the centre of Spain's steel industry. Coal and mercury were also mined in this area. Now, it is expensive to mine in Spain. It is cheaper to import (to buy and transport) raw materials from other countries than to mine in Spain. Because of this, less people work in the mining industry in Spain now than in the past.

Consequences of modern mining Social consequences for Asturias and León Mining has changed a lot in the last 100 years. A big part of mining is now done by machine, so there are less jobs for people. Now, people want more decorative raw materials for building like marble and granite, and less people want things like coal. Because of this, coal mining has become very expensive. Because there are less jobs in the mining industry in Asturias and León, people are now migrating to other areas to look for jobs. Environmental consequences of mining Natural products like iron ore and coal can only be mined until there is nothing left. When a mine is empty, it is closed, and activity moves to another area. The surface of land is ruined when mines are created or iron ore is extracted. When we dig into the ground, we disturb the way water moves naturally under the earth. This can affect the lakes and rivers in a large area around mines, and has a big impact on the ecosystems in these environments. Waste products can enter the water underground and can destroy crops, plants and soil for many years after a mine is closed. It is expensive to clean waste products from mining

For example… The company "Coto Minero del Cantábrico" has been opencast mining in Asturias since the 1990s. Opencast mining destroys entire mountains and big areas of forest in Asturias. Destroying mining waste involves incineration, which means heating the waste with fire until it turns to ash and gases. These gases are then released into the air. An opencast mine in Asturias Modern mining does not require a lot of people. Machines dig and process raw materials, and each time a mine is ‘switched on’, only a few people are needed to operate the machinery.

Vocabulary for activity 3, page 71 Landform A natural feature of the earth's surface, like a mountain or a natural lake Land relief Land relief is what the surface of the land looks like. You can have flat, hilly or mountainous land. It can effect where farms are located, for example. Land relief is the difference between the highest point and the lowest point of the land, and is shown in different colours on a map