The EPA further reports that of the abandoned uranium mines on Navajo lands, funding has been released to cleanup of them. Without mined materials like fossil fuels, metal-ore, precious metals, and other mined resources, modern life would be impossible. Many precious metals are used to create modern technologies making it difficult to get away from the demand for non-renewable resources , such as precious metals. However, by controlling the extent of mining and developing safe ways to manage mining waste, the environmental impact can be reduced.
How Mining Methods Affect the Environment There are many forms of mining depending on the resource being extracted. Underground mining involves digging and tunneling to reach deep deposits like coal. Surface or strip mining removes surface vegetation and soil to exploit shallow deposits of coal. Placer extracting mining of metals is done by sifting riverbeds or beach sands. Gold is an example of a metal that is extracted this way. In-situ original place recover or in-situ leaching mining is used for uranium extraction.
Employing Multiple Mining Methods Some resources can be mined using more than one method, as in the case of coal, gold and uranium. Deforestation The three mining phases are exploration, production or extraction and post-mining land-use. According to Mongabay U. However, in , wildfires attributed to the highest levels of deforestation since the decline.
Release of mining wastes can also affect habitats. For example, 10, hectares of forests were lost through die-off as a result of copper mine wastes in Papua New Guinea according to GFA.
The type of mining and the material mined also has an important influence on the extent and type of destruction. Consider the example of coal extraction through strip mining. Strip Mining of Coal Coal is mined by strip and underground mining. Erosion Loss of forests and subsequent mining operations disturb the soil.
Environmental Devastation From Topsoil Loss The displaced fertile topsoil is eroded or transported away, leaving the area unfit for growing any trees. Pollutants Buried in Soil Are Released There are many heavy metals and toxic chemicals that are buried in the soil that get released during mining and end up polluting air, water and land. Mine Tailings from Ore Mines Surface or open pit mining and underground mining create mine tailings that are often in the form of a mud-like or slurry substance.
Hazardous Radioactive Rocks Exposed The mining process can also expose radioactive rocks and create metallic dust. Acid Drainage When metals mix with water, the water can become acidic. Acidic Soil Copper and nickel dust from mines can make soil acidic for many kilometers of land around mines.
Toxic Chemicals Many of the chemicals used in mining are toxic and can escape into soil and water. Harmful Mining Dust Particles Dust is a major air pollutant produced by mining. Coal Mine Methane Gas Release The process of mining can release methane gas that is trapped in coal seams. Reduction of Watershed Area Ground water is depleted through mining operations from cutting forests.
Underground Drainage In strip mining and underground mining, the groundwater is pumped from reservoirs. Stream Flow Blocked In many cases, strip mining blocks streams, causing downstream rivers to dry up. Mining Ponds and Sedimentation Lagoons Artificial pit pools and sedimentation lagoons are built to contain water contaminated by the toxic chemicals from the mines. Habitat Loss and Alteration Habitat loss can occur due to mining through many ways. Forests Loss Mining can affect habitats due to forest loss and degradation.
Loss of Biodiversity When pristine old forest growth is cut down, the plants and species that grow on the empty land are common hardy species instead of the forest species. Forest Fragmentation Forests cleared to make way for mines create empty gaps or stretches that break up previously continuous forests into small fragments. Invasive Species In the empty mines and the forest edges, invasive species can move in.
Lost Wildlife Habitats The loss of trees leads to a loss of nesting places for birds. Noise and Light Pollution Noise and light pollution affect many songbirds, driving them to search for new habitats. Rare Species Populations of rare tree species cut to make room for mining operations are at risk. Animal Road Deaths With the construction of necessary roads to the mines, the loss of animal life increases. Increase in Hunting Once roads are constructed to facilitate the mining operation, there is an increase in the hunting of wild animals as local hunters discover these new inroads to virgin hunting grounds.
Mountain Top Strip Mining Strip mining has some specific effects. Effects of Mountain Top Strip Mining Strip mining has some effects peculiar to it in addition to the general effects of mining like fragmentation, disappearance of the rarer birds, mammals and reptiles according to research published in Bioscience.
Irreparable Landscape Changes Landscapes are changed when the tops of mountains are removed, The area is flattened changing the type of landscapes forever.
Niches Lost Many small niches or living spaces for plants and animals are lost. Temperatures Rise When the elevation of mountains are lowered, previously colder regions are lost. Loss of Forest Areas Forest areas are lost due to mountain top mining. Wetlands and Swamp Diversity Lost When soil from the excavated mountain top is dumped into streams, it blocks water movement. Pollutants Kill Flora and Fauna Mining releases dust and many chemicals into the atmosphere that pollutes air, water, and land.
Concerns include:. The largest physical disturbances at a mine site are the actual mine workings, such as open pits and the associated waste rock disposal areas. Mining facilities such as offices, shops, and mills, which occupy a small part of the disturbed area, are usually salvaged or demolished when the mine is closed.
The open pits and waste rock disposal areas are the principal visual and aesthetic impacts of mining. Underground mining generally results in relatively small waste rock disposal areas ranging from a few acres in size to tens of acres 0.
These areas are typically located near the openings of the underground workings. Open pit mining disturbs larger areas than underground mining, and thus has larger visual and physical impacts. As the amount of waste rock in open pit mines is commonly two to three times the amount of ore produced, tremendous volumes of waste rock are removed from the pits and deposited in areas nearby.
Waste piles from processing, such as tailings impoundments, leach piles, and slag piles vary in size, but can be very large. The impoundments associated with some of the largest mills, such as at open pit copper mines, can cover thousands of acres tens of km2 and be several hundred feet about m thick.
Heap leach piles can cover tens to hundreds of acres 0. They resemble waste rock piles in location and size, but are more precisely engineered. Slag is a glassy by-product of smelting; slag piles can cover tens to hundreds of acres 0. These impacts remain on the landscape until the disturbed areas are stabilized and reclaimed for other uses, such as wildlife habitat or recreation areas, after mining has ceased.
Waste rock disposal areas are usually located as close to the mine as possible to minimize haulage costs. If not properly managed, erosion of mineralized waste rock into surface drainages may lead to concentrations of metals in stream sediments. This situation can be potentially harmful, particularly if the metals are in a chemical form that allows them to be easily released from the sediments into stream waters.
In some cases, bioavailable metals are absorbed by plants and animals, causing detrimental effects. Although current U. These conditions still exist at some old or abandoned mines. Slag is a by-product of the smelting process. Relevant reviews that are identified during screening will be reserved for assessment of potentially missed records. Once screening is complete see below , we will screen the reference lists of these reviews and include relevant full texts in the systematic map database.
We will also retain these relevant reviews in an additional systematic map database of review articles. A set of 41 studies known to be relevant have been provided by the Advisory Team and Working Group review team ; the benchmark list see Additional file 4. During scoping and development of the search string, the bibliographic database search results will be checked to ascertain whether any of these studies were not found. For any cases where articles on the benchmark list are missed by the draft search string, we will examine why these studies may have been missed and adapt the search string accordingly.
We will perform a search update immediately prior to completion of the systematic map database i. The search strategy for bibliographic databases will be repeated using the same search string, restricting searches to the time period after the original searches were performed. New search results will be processed in the same way as original search results. Following searching, we will combine results in a review management platform e. EPPI-Reviewer and duplicates will be removed using a combination of automated removal and manual screening.
We will screen records at three levels: title, abstract and full text. Screening will be performed using a review management platform e. Refinements of the inclusion criteria will be made in liaison with the entire review team where necessary.
Only when a kappa score of greater than 0. Consistency checking will be repeated until a score of greater than 0. The following inclusion criteria will be used to assess relevance of studies identified through searching. All inclusion criteria will be used at full text screening, but we believe that data type and comparator are unlikely to be useful at title and abstract screening, since this information is often not well-reported in titles or abstracts. Eligible population: : We will include social, technological and environmental systems in Arctic and boreal regions based on political boundaries as follows this encompasses various definitions of boreal zones, rather than any one specific definition for comprehensiveness and ease of understanding : Canada, USA Alaska , Greenland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Norway including Svalbard , Sweden, Finland, and Russia.
We will include all impacts positive, negative, direct and indirect associated with any aspect of metal mining and its mitigation measures. We will include research pertaining to all stages of mining, from prospecting onwards as follows: prospecting, exploration, construction, operation, maintenance, expansion, abandonment, decommissioning, reopening and repurposing.
Eligible mines will include those of gold, iron, copper, nickel, zinc, silver, molybdenum and lead. Any and all outcomes i. We will include both primary empirical research and secondary research reviews will be catalogued in a separate database. Modelling studies and commentaries will not be included. For all articles excluded at title and abstract or full text levels, reasons for exclusion will be provided in the form of one or more a priori exclusion criteria as follows:.
We will attempt to retrieve full texts of relevant abstracts using Stockholm University and Carleton University library subscriptions. Where full texts cannot be readily retrieved this way or via associated library inter-loan networks , we will make use of institutional access provided to our Advisory Team members, including: University College London, KTH, University of Lapland, and SLU.
This systematic map will not involve an assessment of study validity an optional part of systematic maps , although some extracted meta-data and coding will relate to internal validity. None of the review team has authored or worked on research within this field prior to starting this project, but members of the Advisory Team and project Working Group will be prevented from providing advice or comments relating specifically to research papers to which they may have contributed.
We will extract and code a range of variables, outlined in Table 4. All meta-data and coding will be included in a detailed systematic map database, with each line representing one study-location i. Meta-data extraction and coding will be performed by multiple reviewers following consistency checking on an initial coding of subset of between 10 and 15 full texts, discussing all disagreements. The remaining full texts will then be coded.
If resources allow we may contact authors by email with requests for missing information. We will narratively synthesise the relevant evidence base in our systematic map using descriptive plots and tables showing the number of studies identified across the variables described above. We will display the contents of our systematic map database in an Evidence Atlas; an interactive, web-based geographical information system showing all meta-data and coding on a cartographic map.
We will use interactive heat maps pivot charts to display the volume of evidence across multiple dimensions of meta-data in order to identify knowledge gaps sub-topics un- or under-represented by evidence and knowledge clusters sub-topics with sufficient evidence to allow full synthesis.
Examples of meta-data variables that will be used together include this is an indicative rather than exhaustive list :. Impacts of mercury contaminated mining waste on soil quality, crops, bivalves, and fish in the Naboc River area, Mindanao, Philippines. Sci Total Environ. Dudka S, Adriano DC. Environmental impacts of metal ore mining and processing: a review.
J Environ Qual. Processes of land use change in mining regions. J Clean Prod. Article Google Scholar. Gold mining in the Peruvian Amazon: global prices, deforestation, and mercury imports. Impacts of mining activities on water and soil. J Environ Sci Eng. CAS Google Scholar.
Mchaina D. Environmental planning considerations for the decommissioning, closure and reclamation of a mine site. Abandoned mine sites as a source of contamination by heavy metals: a case study in a semi-arid zone.
J Geochem Explor. Abandoned artisanal gold mines in the Brazilian Amazon: a legacy of mercury pollution. In: Natural resources forum.
Wiley Online Library. Range selection by semi-domesticated reindeer Rangifer tarandus tarandus in relation to infrastructure and human activity in the boreal forest environment, northern Finland. Cumulative effects of human developments on arctic wildlife. Wildl Monogr. Google Scholar. Stephens C, Ahern M. The strength to be human.
Nottingham: Inter Varsity Press. Fernandez-Twinn, D. Intergenerational epigenetic inheritance in models of developmental programming of adult disease. Gamble, J. A critical review of coal workers pneumoconiosis CWP and coal rank for evaluation of safe exposure levels in coal mining.
Journal of Clinical Toxicology, S1, Graber, J. Increasing severity of pneumoconiosis among younger former US coal miners working exclusively under modern dust-control regulations. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 59 6 , e—e Global Policy Forum. Minerals in conflict. Haas, E. A qualitative comparison of susceptibility and behavior in recreational and occupational risk environments: Implications for promoting health and safety.
Journal of Health and Community, 21 6 , — Han, R. BMC Pulmonary Medicine, 15, He, X. Element-based prognostics of occupational pneumoconiosis using micro-proton-induced X-ray emission analysis. Herm, F. Osteomalacia in Hazara District, Pakistan.
Tropical Doctor, 35, 8— Hermanus, M. Occupational health and safety in mining—Status, new developments, and concerns. IARC monographs volume D internalized a - particle emitting radionuclides.
Accessed November 15, Ishtiaq, M. Potential harmful elements in coal dust and human health risk assessment near the mining areas in Cherat, Pakistan. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 25 15 , — Jacobs, M. Stress, coping and safety compliance in a multinational gold mining company. International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics, 23 2 , — Jarvis, R. Ghebrehewet, A.
Stewart, D. Baxter, P. Shears, D. Kliner Eds. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Kar-Purkayastha, I. Public health: Ethical issues. International Journal of Epidemiology, 38 4 , — Kistnasamy, B. Tackling injustices of occupational lung disease acquired in South African mines: Recent developments and ongoing challenges. Globalization and Health, 14, Knoblauch, A. Monitoring of selected health indicators in children living in a copper mine development area in northwestern Zambia. Krebs, J.
The importance of public-health ethics. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 86 8 , — Kusiak, R. Mortality from lung cancer in Ontario uranium miners. British Journal of Industrial Medicine, 50 10 , — Kyeremateng-Amoah, E. Injuries among artisanal and small-scale gold miners in Ghana. Lake District National Park. Coniston copper; miners and the mining community.
Laney, A. Radiographic disease progression in contemporary US coal miners with progressive massive fibrosis. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 74 7 , — Lau, W. Human health risk assessment based on trace metals in suspended air particulates, surface dust, and floor dust from e-waste recycling workshops in Hong Kong, China. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 21 5 , — Leung, C.
The Lancet, , — Lewis, J. Mining and environmental health disparities in Native American communities. Current Environmental Health Reports, 4, — Liao, J. Distribution and migration of heavy metals in soil and crops affected by acid mine drainage: Public health implications in Guangdong Province, China. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, , — Liu, Y. Long, R. Mahoney, G. Achieving attainable outcomes from good science in an untidy world: Case studies in land and air pollution.
Environmental Geochemistry and Health, 37, — Maier, R. Socially responsible mining: The relationship between mining and poverty, human health and the environment. Reviews on Environmental Health, 29, 83— Mandrioli, D. Environment International, , — Mariotti, A.
The effects of chronic stress on health: New insights into the molecular mechanisms of brain—body communication. Marsit, C. Influence of environmental exposure on human epigenetic regulation.
Journal of Experimental Biology, , 71— Martin, R. Health effects associated with inhalation of airborne arsenic arising from mining operations. Geosciences, 4 3 , — Meyer, C. Characterisation and distribution of deposited trace elements transported over long and intermediate distances in north-eastern France using Sphagnum peatlands as a sentinel ecosystem. Atmospheric Environment, , — Mining Health Initiative.
Mining health partnerships: A short analytic framework. Mo, J. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health, 1 , 46— Mokhtari, A. Investigating the role of wind in the dispersion of heavy metals around mines in arid regions a case study from Kushk Pb—Zn Mine, Bafgh, Iran. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, , United States Department of Labor.
Coal Fatalities for Through Nemery, B. Assessing exposure to metals using biomonitoring: Achievements and challenges experienced through surveys in low- and middle-income countries.
Toxicology Letters, , 13— Ngosa, K. The risk of pulmonary tuberculosis in underground copper miners in Zambia exposed to respirable silica: A cross-sectional study. BMC Public Health, 16 1 , Onder, S. Analyses of non-fatal accidents in an opencast mine by logistic regression model—A case study.
Ortmann, L. Public health ethics: Global cases, practice, and context. Barrett, L. Ortmann, A. Dawson, C. Saenz, A. Bolan Eds. Cham: Springer. Pembrey, M. Human transgenerational responses to early-life experience: Potential impact on development, health and biomedical research.
Journal of Medical Genetics, 51 9 , — Perret, J. Coal mine dust lung disease in the modern era. Respirology, 22 4 , — Rajaee, M. Integrated assessment of artisanal and small-scale gold mining in Ghana—Part 2: Natural sciences review. Reynolds, R. Compositional changes in sediments of subalpine lakes, Uinta Mountains Utah : Evidence for the effects of human activity on atmospheric dust inputs.
Journal of Paleolimnology, 44 1 , — Roberts, B. What can 35 years and over , measurements tell us about noise exposure in the mining industry? International Journal of Audiology, 56 sup1 , 4— Rogich, D. Rosental, P.
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