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| Berkeley Pit: Filled With Toxic Water |
First if you look at the area affected by mining such pit
and then looking at how deadly the water accumulating in it and the potential
threat that it poses on the surrounding water reserves and the efforts that are
made and still need to be made are all indications of how
can mining be such a threat to the environment and to human safety as well.
And the story does not end there as because of the Pit there is also the
problem of the Yankee
Doodle Tailings Pond that is adds to the environmental bill paid by such
acts.
So what is our purpose here in this post, our aim is quite
simple. We need to spread awareness among people all around the world that open
mining is not a good way to extract metals and in many ways recycling can be a
better option, as for general information, Berkeley Pit (lick on the link for a Google map location of Berkeley Pit) was a
copper extraction site, where around one billion tons of copper and other
metals were extracted.
Then what needs to be done?
Let’s be realistic although mining can be one of the most
ugly faces of modernization, it is a necessary evil, there is a need for many
metals that are core in day to day uses and that is okay. It's a good thing that this area is declared a superfund by the US government, but that is not enough and certain measures
must be applied to the mining industry in such a way that the environmental
cost is included in the equation.
Private companies are always opting for more
profits and nothing more, so we need to force these companies to pay for the
mess they leave behind. The ecosystem that is threatened by mining must be
taken in consideration. Then strict action must be taken to reduce all types of
pollution whether that be water, air or soil pollution.
Our children will be forced to inherit our mess and will
have to either deal with that mess or inherit it to their children, but we have
a fighting chance, and we can make the world a better place for future
generations, if and only if we consider the environment around us and consider
our impact on our surroundings. This can be started by raising mining
standards, and don’t worry mining companies will make a little less profits but
at the same time they will be helping in preserving the uniqueness of the areas
they are willing to extract metals from.
Do you think that open mines are supposed to be left open
forever? What other measures can be taken to limit mining footprint on the
environment? For your ideas and comments please don’t hesitate to post below.
You might be interested in the following:
Diamond Mining and the Environmental Costs
How Gold is Mined: A Destructive Process
Uranium Mining: Not Eco-Friendly
Mining Impact on the Environment