The dumping of the runoff in surface waters or in a lot of forests is the worst option. Runoff containing these chemicals can lead to the devastation of the surrounding vegetation. As mining produces copious amounts of waste water, disposal methods are limited due to contaminates within the waste water.
Large amounts of water used for mine drainage, mine cooling, aqueous extraction and other mining processes increases the potential for these chemicals to contaminate ground and surface water. If proper precautions are not taken, unnaturally high concentrations of chemicals, such as arsenic, sulfuric acid, and mercury can spread over a significant area of surface or subsurface water. Mining can have harmful effects on surrounding surface and groundwater. Back-filling and grouting can be done to stabilize abandoned underground workings. Sinkholes at a mine site can be mitigated with the proper design of infrastructure such as mining supports and better construction of walls to create a barrier around an area prone to sinkholes. The sudden failure of earth creates a large depression at the surface without warning, this can be seriously hazardous to life and property. These cavities in the overburden have the potential to eventually cave in, forming a sinkhole at the surface. The overburden at the mine site can develop cavities in the subsoil or rock, which can infill with sand and soil from the overlying strata. House in Gladbeck, Germany, with fissures caused by gravity erosion due to miningĪ sinkhole at or near a mine site is typically caused from the failure of a mine roof from the extraction of resources, weak overburden or geological discontinuities. In wilderness areas mining may cause destruction of ecosystems and habitats, and in areas of farming it may disturb or destroy productive grazing and croplands. Soil erosion is mainly caused by excessive rainfall, lack of soil management and chemical exposure from mining. Soil erosion can decrease the water availability for plant growth, resulting in a population decline in the plant ecosystem. 12 Impacts associated with specific types of miningĮrosion of exposed hillsides, mine dumps, tailings dams and resultant siltation of drainages, creeks and rivers can significantly affect the surrounding areas, a prime example being the giant Ok Tedi Mine in Papua New Guinea.
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