What are the benefits of mining? | 5 Answers from Research papers (2024)

FAQs

What benefits do we obtain through mining? ›

As a developed society we are fortunate to enjoy the many benefits that lignite, uranium and industrial minerals help provide. These benefits include low-cost, reliable electricity and the materials necessary to build our homes, schools, hospitals, roads, highways, bridges and airports.

Mining provides several benefits to society. It serves as a key player in economic development, employment, infrastructure, and the supply of essential raw materials . Mining operations also have the potential to generate significant revenues for sustainable development in mineral-rich countries .

It also provides the employment opportunities to a lot of people who can run their family. Thus, mining is a way that provides the industrial materials which are commonly used for various purposes such as construction, and other useful products. This is how mining is benefiting the society.

Solution mining offers several benefits compared to traditional mining methods including lower environmental impact, reduced energy consumption, higher resource recovery to deeper deposits, and reduced safety risk.

Mining is the process of extracting useful materials from the earth. Some examples of substances that are mined include coal, gold, or iron ore. Iron ore is the material from which the metal iron is produced. The process of mining dates back to prehistoric times.

Our daily lives depend on minerals and metals. We need them for almost every component of our modern world, as well as the world we are building. Mined materials are used to create batteries, solar panels, and wind turbines.

Mining can cause erosion, sinkholes, loss of biodiversity, or the contamination of soil, groundwater, and surface water by chemicals emitted from mining processes. These processes also affect the atmosphere through carbon emissions which contributes to climate change.

Aside from supporting thousands of jobs, the mining industry provides raw materials, minerals and metals critical to our economy. They provide the foundations for modern living, innovation and engineering achievements. Take platinum, for example; it is used in more than 20 percent of all manufactured goods.

Some examples of the negative environmental impacts of mining include climate change, deforestation/habitat destruction, pollution, soil erosion, human-wildlife conflict, and the loss of biodiversity.

What are the social impacts of mining? ›

For instance, mining companies can invest in building schools, hospitals, and other community facilities that benefit the local population. However, mining can also have negative social impacts, including the displacement of communities, loss of land and livelihoods, and health hazards.

IMPORTANCE OF MINING

It provides employment, dividends, and taxes that pay for hospitals, schools, and public facilities. The mining industry produces a trained workforce and small businesses that can service communities and may initiate related businesses.

U.S. mining directly and indirectly generated more than 1.2 million full-time and part-time jobs in 2021, including employees and the self-employed. U.S. mines accounted for 459,000 jobs. Jobs in other industries attributable to or induced by U.S. mining totaled nearly 800,000.

From his fieldwork interviews, Odell has learned that the development of mines within communities can offer benefits. Mining companies typically invest directly in communities through employment, road construction, and sometimes even by building or investing in schools, stadiums, or health clinics.

Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agricultural processes, or feasibly created artificially in a laboratory or factory. Ores recovered by mining include metals, coal, oil shale, gemstones, limestone, chalk, dimension stone, rock salt, potash, gravel, and clay.

By creating high-paying jobs and providing the raw materials essential to every sector of our economy, minerals mining helps stimulate economic growth.

Responsible mining companies contribute to the economic development of the communities in which they operate. This includes providing jobs and training, investing in local infrastructure, and supporting community development initiatives.