A History of Mining
March 4, 2009
Mining has come a long way since the days of the gold rush. When once miners would go down into underground mines, mining has transformed into large-scale operations requiring huge open pits, devastating the environment and surrounding communities.
As early as the 9th century, mining took place in Africa, with mined gold traded to people as far away as Asia. An early form of globalization came with colonialism and imperialism, as the United States and European countries realized they could profit off of the gold mined from foreign communities. Most of us have heard of the horrors that occurred when Spanish conquistadors went after Aztec gold, but many are unaware of the consequences of modern mining.
97% of the metals in the United States were mined from open pit mines. These mines require all of the vegetation to be removed from a large area, blast a massive hole into the ground, and produce 8-10 times as much waste as underground mines. In gold mining, the gold is extracted using a cyanide leaching process, which often results in cyanide poisoning surrounding groundwater. But luckily for Americans, most gold mining occurs outside of the United States, where poor communities and countries in debt allow mining corporations to operate with few restrictions. Many mining corporations are allowed to enter an area, claim land rights, and clear the area of residents. In one district of Ghana, more than 30,000 people were displaced between 1990 and 1998. And working in a mine is no cakewalk either; the International Labour Organization reports that mining accounts for 5% of all workplace deaths each year.
Luckily, there is hope on the horizon, at least where gold mines are concerned. The “No Dirty Gold” campaign encourages consumers to purchase “clean” gold, gold not mined from pits. Consumers can also purchase gold from companies that make jewelry from melted down jewelry, or purchase antique jewelry.
Evaluate this post:
https://skylight.wsu.edu/Survey/Delivery/TakeSurvey.aspx?SurveyID=834189e3-c8ef-4f43-b20d-335a25c3371e
This is really interesting! I particularly like your suggestions/insights into alternatives for jewlery consumers like melting down old jewlery.
Very interesting! Well written history on this topic. I am glad you explained what people can do to help with this problem. Next time I buy myself some gold jewelry, I will buy jewelry that was not made in a pit or buy antique jewelry (I probably won’t buy myself jewelry soon though).