Mining and Minerals

Abstract

Mining is one of the oldest industries on Earth, and minerals are essential for the modern society and many industrial processes. The future of the mining industry depends on the deposits which are finite and will be exhausted. The sustainable development of the mining industry consists of four components: economics, deposits, environment, and people. Modern mining enables us to extract minerals by using surface, underground, and drilling technologies and others methods. Unfortunately, in recent decades, extraction of minerals has lost its sustainability trait due to drastically rising consumption. It also results in significant and negative environmental and social impact. Restoration of sustainability requires here a great effort both from the mining industry and society. The necessary change in the relations between mining production of minerals and their consumption should be based on the 3Rs principle: reduce – reuse – recycle. Working conditions in the mining industry are potentially hazardous, especially in underground mines where accidents and fatalities and occupational health hazards are serious problems. Mining companies worldwide are aware of the challenge, which in fact, sustainable development is and has been taking actions to address it since the 1990s. It concerns mainly big mining enterprises, while in small and artisanal mines, the actions taken are not satisfactory. Mining operations cannot proceed without a “social license to operate” from local communities. State-of-the-art solutions in mechanization and automation of extraction and processing activities, continuous monitoring of how mining operations influence the environment, and control systems of natural and technical hazards are critical elements of the mining industry’s sustainable development. What needs to be noted are the actions associated with restoring utility values to the areas devastated by mining operations after mining operations in a deposit are over.