EARTH

Earth is a rocky planet. It is also the densest planet in the solar system because the core consists of iron
surrounded by a mantle of rock. The materials that humans use are limited, and if they are overexploited, it
could lead to a world shortage.
1.1)Formation of rocks

When magma from the crust and upper mantle cools, igneous rocks are
formed. Magma can be found in the outer mantle as a liquid rock, and
when it cools, it turns into solid rock.

When magma
rises to the surfaces from volcanoes, it is called lava. These igneous rocks contain crystals and other minerals.
These crystals found in rocks are formed when it can’t absorb any more dissolved minerals. The size of the
crystal depends on how fast the rock cools obsidian, granite
Sedimentary rocks are formed by the weathering of
existing rocks at the earth’s surface, these may contain
fossils the accumulation and fossilization of living material,
or the precipitation of dissolved materials out of solution in
water. The weathering process involves the release of small
mineral particles that accumulate to form sediment. As time
passes, layers of sediment build up to form a SR.
The particles are transported by streams and rivers and then
deposited as sediment. Each layer becomes more compact
and harder because of the pressure created by the deposits above them. This is called sedimentation
Limestone and Sandstone
Metamorphic rocks are created from existing rocks when the heat above 150°C, or pressure, or both, causes
changes in the rock crystals without melting the existing rock. Therefore, the existing rock changes its
structure(physically or chemically). Both IR and SR can become MR. MR are harder than SR. Quartzite.
marble

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 IR SR MR

Made from liquid magma Made from other rock Made from existing rock
fragments

Magma cools to form it Rock fragments become The original rock is changed
buried and increased pressure in form by heat and pressure
forms it

Mineral crystals sometimes No crystals Mineral crystals present.

present. The size depends on
the speed of cooling.

No fossils present Fossils may be present No fossils present

Rock Cycle: When the earth´s crust first formed, all the rocks were IR. These rocks slowly eroded, releasing
small particles that formed sediment, and these sediments built up over time to form SR. these rocks are
always moving, so they can become MR.

1.2)Extraction of rocks and minerals from Earth

Minerals provide us with a wide range of materials that we use every day. The simplest way to find mineral
deposits is to look carefully at the surface of rocks. This process is prospecting.

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Deposits on the surface can also be found using a range of remote sensing methods. For example, by air
photographs are taken and then analyzed.
Some minerals are weathered at the earth's surface, producing mineral oxides that can be detected by their
radiation pattern, which can be recorded by a satellite.
Geophysics are also used to identify minerals by a series of vibrations (seismic waves) that are sent through
the earths surface. Several sensors at different distances from the source of vibration are located on the
ground. These vibrations create shock waves that travel into the rock layers and are reflected back to the
sensors on the surface. The shock waves record different patterns depending on what minerals are present in
the rock layers.

Mining rocks and minerals.

In order to extract deposits of mineral ores, a resource evaluation takes place with the aim of estimating the
grade and tonnage the mineral has in a deposit. Drilling to collect rock samples must be done to carry out a
resource evaluation.
There are two main types of mining:

- Surface mining: includes open-cast, open-pit, open-cut and strip mining. This type of mining is used
when a valuable deposit is located near the surface, often buried below a thick layer of worthless
material. The material above the deposit is called overburden, which has to be removed first to expose
the deposit. Open-pit mines are dug in sections called benches. The walls of the benches are kept at an
angle to reduce the risk of rock falls. Roads have to be made as the digging progresses to allow the
removal of the mineral deposit and overburden. Building material such as sand or stone are removed
from open pits called quarries.
Open-pit mines stop being worked because of 2 reasons. First, in some cases, as much valuable
deposit has been removed. Second, the amount of overburden that needs to be removed has increased
to an extent that the mine is no longer profitable.

- Sub-surface mining: includes deep and shaft mining. This type of mining involves digging tunnels
into the ground to reach mineral deposits that are too deep to be removed by surface mining.
Horizontal tunnels are dug into the coal from a mountain: this is a drift mine entered by an adit.
The deepest deposits are reached by digging a vertical shaft. Horizontal galleries are then dug into the
mineral deposits. Most of the material is removed from mines by machine. Compared with open-pit

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 mining, any form of shaft mining is more difficult because supplies of air and water have to be
provided.

Greenfield sites are areas that have never been mined for minerals. The chances of finding a deposit there are
low. Brownfield sites are areas that have already been mined. Deeper deposits can only be extracted by shaft
mining, which is more costly to set up and maintain, so the cost per ton will be higher than open-pit mining.
The size of a deposit that can be extracted is also important. Small deposits of high-grade ore may be worth
mining. Small deposits for low grade ore that cannot be mined at a profit are left for the future.
The transportation of the ore from a mine to the processing plant may be difficult and expensive. This factor is
important in determining to exploit a mine or not. For large tonnages, rail transport is the only cost-effective
method of moving the ore. If it is going to be exported, large ships can be used. Another way to cut costs is to
process some of the ore at the mine.
Increase in world demand for any mineral ore will drive the price up, this is because changes in supply and
demand can increase or decrease the price. If the world price is high, then deposits that were not previously
exploited, may become worth mining. The opposite happens if the world price is low.
1.3)Impact of rock and mineral extraction.
Mining impacts:

- Ecological: mining involves the loss of habitat for some species of plants and animals. If plants are
removed, some animals lose their food source. Especially large-scale surface mining causes the
greatest loss of habitat as vegetation has to be removed and then marge volumes of removed
overburden have to be stored. After minerals are extracted, the overburden is spread over the mined
area to restore the land, which will slowly become covered in plant species. However, this vegetation
will have less biodiversity compared to the original vegetation.
To make a mine the companies have to apply for a license, it will only be accepted if the loss of
habitat is as small as possible, and if they restore the land after the mining has finished.
- Pollution: it can be noise, water, land, air or visual pollution. Noise pollution can disturb the behavior
of animal species near the mine or cause hearing problems for people. The water that comes from
mine shafts, can contaminate rivers or drinking water supplies, providing high concentration of toxic
metal ions to this water, making it unsafe for people to drink. If consumed, organisms absorb these
ions and reserve them in the body, this is called bioaccumulation. The land surrounding the mine will
become polluted because of the mine waste. Many mining activities release dust particles which will
settle on the vegetation near the mine. Dust reduces plant growth because it doesn’t allow them to
produce photosynthesis. This dust is also released into the air we breathe, and so, it can lead to serious
lung diseases that can cause death.
- Economic: extracting minerals provides jobs for people and taxes for the government. Also, refining
these minerals creates further jobs. If they are exported, they generate money for the country because
of the exportation and create jobs in foreign countries. People who transport the mineral ores are also
employed.

1.4)Managing the impact of rock and mineral extraction

Management of a mining operation should start with plans for safe waste disposal and end with plans to return
the land to its original state. In the past, mining waste has usually been put in piles near the extraction point or
on top of water courses, polluting everything. In other cases, waste piles were unstable and collapsed, killing
people or animals and increasing pollution. Nowadays, safe storage and disposal of waste must be presented
in order to obtain the mining license.

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When mining has finished, the land needs to be restored. The most common thing is to recover with a layer of
soil, which may be enriched with fertilizer and trees to restore an ecosystem. Some mine waste does not allow
the growth of tree roots, so contaminated waste can be treated where it was left by bioremediation, which is a
process in which living things are used to remove toxic chemicals from a natural site. Many microorganisms
such as bacteria, are able to break down toxic substances into less toxic ones. Despite this, even though the
ground surface is less toxic, it may still not be possible to use it for farming or building of houses.
1.5)Sustainable use of rocks and minerals
The supply of rock and minerals involves a lot of pollution, therefore a fully sustainable resource will never
come out. Also, these resources are finite, meaning that they will not be there forever. National laws and
international agreements must encourage sustainable development of resources in order to benefit people,
environment and economic growth. As the world population continues to increase, maintaining sustainability
is difficult. On the other hand,
it may be possible to find substitutes for the use of relatively scarce materials.
How can we make this process more sustainable?

- Efficiency of extraction: for example, on the first round of a mining process, from 55% to 70% of
resources are extracted. To improve efficiency of extraction, already extracted mines are being
processed for a second time, allowing valuable materials to be recovered instead of exploiting new
mines. For this second time extraction, new methods are used, such as biological treatment with
microorganisms or chemical treatment. Improvements in the machine’s performances used for mining
and data processing also increases the efficiency of extraction.
- Efficiency of use and recycling: most metals can be recovered and refined back to clean metals to be
used by industries again. This uses less energy than processing new mines. The major way in which
governments are trying to encourage a more sustainable use of minerals and rocks is to pass laws that
requires manufacturers to become responsible for recycling and reusing.