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Mining Hazards

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Encyclopedia of Engineering Geology

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series ((EESS))

Synonyms

Mining catastrophes; Mining disasters

Definition

A mining hazard is a source of danger or potential danger, caused by the working of minerals, which has the potential to cause harm to life or damage to a mine, infrastructure, utilities, land, or the environment.

Environmental Impact of Mining

Mining has generated considerable wealth, reduced poverty, and improved the quality of peoples’ lives by the provision of natural resources. Modern society would not function as we know it without mining and mineral commodities. As such, minerals are crucial to society and are likely to remain so into the foreseeable future. However, mining can have a detrimental impact on people, society, and the environment. These impacts manifest throughout the world as mining hazards (Bell and Donnelly 2006; CIRIA 2018; Culshaw et al. 2000; HSE 2014).

Mine Entries

Mine shafts and adits facilitate the extraction of mineral deposits. They provide access, ventilation, remove minewater, waste rock,...

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References

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Donnelly, L. (2018). Mining Hazards. In: Bobrowsky, P.T., Marker, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Engineering Geology. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-73568-9_202

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