Chapter 15 1.Stone Age 6,000 BC to 2,000 BC 2.Bronze Age 2,500BC or 1,000AD to iron age 3.Iron Age - most by 1,000BC Stone = differently shaped rocks Bronze = Copper and Tin Steel = iron and carbon What age are we in now?

Mining law Promoted development & settlement of western public lands 1.File claims to hard rock minerals at $ an acre / keep all profits / no royalties to… 1. Supersedes all other uses of the land or designations 1.Legacy of law - superfund sites / acid drainage / 40% all headwaters contaminated in west 1.Colorado has about 23,000 abandoned hard-rock mine sites - more than 500,000 nation wide

Open Pit Mining

Heap Leaching Cyanide for Gold

Acid Mine Drainage

Sulfides exposed to air & water = sulfuric acid 1.Somerset, PA will construct five ponds using Shore Guard vinyl sheet piling. 2.The first two settling ponds the iron mixes with oxygen. 3.The next two ponds contain limestone to remove the acid. 4.Pond five will capture any remaining metals. 5.Then it will flow through a wetland before entering Indian creek. Pyrite Iron Sulfate Acid Mine Drainage = Perpetual Pollution

Heap leaching Cyanide Sulfuric Acid Hg – Gold Amalgamation

Ducktown Tennessee Burra Burra Mine 1960’s 300 Acres left unforested as a reminder – view on Google Earth Picher Oklahoma & Chat Piles:

Copper Basin (Ducktown, TN) Reclamation Problem: 1.Mine Operated Acid Precipitation 3.50 square miles turned to waste 4.Dams lost 25% storage capacity Solution: ’s remediation failed - kudzu 2.16 Million Acid tolerant pine and grass seeds broadcast 3.Added lime and fertilizer 4.Cost $ per acre (32K acres) 5.Erosion went from 200 tons to 8 annually 6.Target completion date 2000

Smelting Coke:Hydrocarbon heated to remove volatiles to get pure carbon.

Phytoremediation - Thlaspi 1.Absorbs Zinc & Cadmium 2.Has an ability to concentrate heavy metals in plant parts AdvantagesDisadvantages Works on a variety of organic and inorganics May take several years to remediate Easy to implementRestricted to shallow sites Low CostDependent on Climate Environmentally friendly Possible impacts on food chain Pleasing to the eyeHarvest can be classified as hazardous waste Reduces waste to landfill Human consumption of food a concern

Summitville Colorado History: Gold Discovered Claims 3.By K lbs gold heap leached pyritic ore with cycanide on 73 acre pad 5.Activated Carbon used to extract minerals from leachate 6.By K lbs gold & 640K silver removed from 500acres of ore Company declares bankruptcy 8.30 Million Paid in Settlement 9.17 Mile stretch of river all life million clean up Why are minerals located here?

Mineral Formation 1. Magmatic concentration - as magma cools it separates with silicates rising and iron, nickel, & copper sinking - layered by density 2. Hydrothermal processes - dissolved minerals mix with salts to form a metal-bearing complex - gold, silver, copper, lead & zinc 3. Sedimentation - dissolved minerals are deposited manganese, copper, sulfur & phosphorus - warm meets cold 4. Evaporation - lakes without outlets salt, borax, potassium, gypsum Metallic and Non-Metallic Minerals Source / Transport / Trapping

Salt Flats Hydrothermal Mineral Deposits

Kaolin Chattahoochee, Ocmulgee, Oconee and Savannah Rivers where inland shipping was stopped by falls or rapids at the Fall Line. Uses: paper, food additive, toothpaste, cosmetics…

Geology

Ore Vs Product

Hydraulic Mining

Hard Rock Mining

Stone MT. in Bloom Diamorphia Smallii Confederate Daisy

The Law Surface Mining Control & Reclamation Act of 1997 Only covers coal SMCRA created two programs: 1.Regulation of active coal mines 2.Reclamation of abandoned mines funded by tax on current mines

Reserve Vs Resource Reserves: 1.Have been located and quantified 2.Can be extracted with current technology 3.Can be extracted profitably Resource: 1.Not yet quantified but located 2.Future technology may make accessible To Deep or under ocean 3.Not profitable under current technology Low Grade Contaminated Drilled out as a reserve source

Cost Benefit Analysis Weigh the cost and benefit of mining…Montana

Future Trends 1. Deep Oceans - international waters 2. Antarctica - should we - will we 3. Biomining 4. Undiscovered Deposits

International Sources - Stockpiling The United States has discovered nearly $1 trillion in untapped mineral deposits in Afghanistan, including huge veins of iron, copper, cobalt, gold and lithium.

Will We Run Out? 1.New Discoveries 2.Replacement Materials - plastics 3.Changing global economy 4.Technology Changes 5.Conservation