The Effects of Coal Mining on the Surrounding Area by Shaunti Bains

History of Coal Mining in BC The Dunsmuir family was in control of the coal industry on Vancouver Island. They later sold the mines to Mackenzie and Mann railway entrepreneurs. While the profits made by the company increased, the safety of the workers decreased. workers were : forced to crawl in tunnels that were dark and wet often injured or killed in explosions paid little despite working long hours

striking miners were: replaced by strike breakers and Asian workers thrown out of their company-owned houses along with their families rioting strikers: stopped by militia arrested The mines were open until the 1930s.

The Importance of Coal Mining in BC some uses of coal include: power generation cooking Coal is exported to other countries for these uses. Canada is able to make a large profit as a result.

Many products are made from coal or coal byproducts. Some examples include: activated carbon (used in water and air purification filters) carbon fibre (used as a reinforcement material because it is both strong and lightweight) silicon metal (used in cosmetics, shampoo, and toothpaste)

The Problem surface mining destroys habitats by clearing the trees in the area waste from mining is dumped into valleys and streams water is polluted by sediments from mining and acidic run-off from metal-rich water land is disturbed by siol erosion, dust, and noise pollution

Perspective A the coal industry is profitable, and therefore concerns about the environment take less priority environmental damage can be reduced any negative effect on the environment is worth the economic benefits

Perspective B short-term economic benefits are not worth the long-term impact on the environment depleting a non-renewable resource is an unsustainable practice Reducing damage to the surrounding area is not necessarily enough to preserve the area’s biodiversity

Global Context entire ecosystems are being destroyed biodiversity is threatened there is dust, noise, and water pollution there are emissions of sulphur oxide and carbon dioxide some emissions cause acid rain hazardous wastes are not properly disposed of

many countries are dependent on coal for electricity generation, and the production of chemical products containing coal or coal byproducts the burning of coal contributes to global warming coal is a non-renewable resource and causes more environmental problems than oil or gas, thus it is not sensible means of electricity production long-term

My Solution reduce use of coal by greater use of more environmentally friendly alternatives underground mining as opposed to surface mining which involves clearing the area of trees studying environment beforehand, to evaluate its suitability as a site for a coal mine

Properly implementing practises to: separate polluted water water from clean water and treat it neutralize acidic run-off with lime spray water to reduce the effects of dust pollution reduce noise produced by machinery

Sources Cranny, Michael, Graham Jarvis, Garvin Moles, and Bruce Seney. "Horizons : Canada Moves West Hardcover – 1999." Horizons : Canada Moves West: Michael Cranny: : Books. MaryLynne Meschino, n.d. Web. 21 May "What Is Coal? How Is Non-renewable Coal Formed?" What Is Coal? How Is Non-renewable Coal Formed? N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May "Uses of Coal." Uses of Coal. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May "Coal." - National Geographic Education. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May "How Coal Works." Union of Concerned Scientists. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May 2015.