ME551GEO551 Geology of Industrial Minerals Spring 2005

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ME551/GEO551 Geology of Industrial Minerals
Spring 2005

• stone, sustainable development, summary, the
  future of mining

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Stone and aggregatesintroduction

• Crushed and dimension
• aggregates
• sand and gravel
• most important indicator of construction
  activities and health of society

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Crushed Stoneintroduction

• 70 limestone and dolomite
• 16, granite
• 7, traprock

• 7 other
• sandstone and quartzite
• miscellaneous stone
• marble
• calcareous marl
• slate
• shell
• volcanic cinder and scoria

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Dimension Stoneintroduction

• natural rock material quarried as blocks or slabs
  that meet specifications as to size (width,
  length, and thickness) and shape
• Color
• Durability

• grain texture
• pattern
• surface finish
• strength,
• ability to take a polish

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Dimension Stoneintroduction

• Granite
• limestone
• marble
• sandstone
• slate
• alabaster (massive gypsum)
• soapstone (massive talc)

• Igneous
• metamorphic
• sedimentary

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Crushed stone and aggregates production
USGS Fact Sheet
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Crushed stone and aggregates production
USGS Fact Sheet
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Crushed stone and aggregates production
USGS Fact Sheet
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Crushed stone production
USGS Fact Sheet
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Crushed stone production
USGS Mineral Yearbooks
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Crushed stone production
USGS Mineral Yearbooks
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Crushed stone production
USGS Mineral Yearbooks
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Dimension stoneuses

• rough block
• construction (38)
• monumental stone (26)

• Dressed stone
• flagging (26)
• curbing (21)
• ashlars and partially squared pieces (14)

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Dimension stoneuses
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Dimension stoneproduction
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Dimension stoneproduction
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Proctor, Vermont Derrick hoisting a 15-ton
block of Vermont Verde Antique Marblehttp//freep
ages.history.rootsweb.com/quarries/states/vt-proc
tor-photos.html
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http//www.geology.enr.state.nc.us/NAE20aggregate
s20Internet20NRC20with20USGS20sheet/load20ha
ul20trucks.htm
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http//www.geology.enr.state.nc.us/NAE20aggregate
s20Internet20NRC20with20USGS20sheet/miningben
ch.htm
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http//www.geology.enr.state.nc.us/NAE20aggregate
s20Internet20NRC20with20USGS20sheet/drilling.
htm
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Sawing the Vermont Verde Antique
Marblehttp//freepages.history.rootsweb.com/quar
ries/states/vt-proctor-photos.html
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Houses made of adobe bricks are still popular in
urban areas.
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Sustainable Development for Industrial Minerals
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NIMBY (Not in my backyard!)
BANANA (Build absolutely nothing, anywhere, near
anybody!)
NOPE (Not on planet earth!)
If it cant be grown, it has to be mined.
Earth First! Well mine the other planets later.
YIMBY (Yes in my backyard.)
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What is sustainable development?
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What is sustainable development?

• Development that meets the needs of the present
  without compromising the ability of future
  generations to meet their own.
• Sustainable development is not about sustaining
  the life of a mine. Instead it is about
  sustaining the flow of materials.

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Continued supply of natural resources to
manufacture and produce products that society
demands

• Recycling
• Re-use
• Less use
• Materials replacement
• Alternative product design
• Mining of new resources

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Brundtland Definition

• meets the needs of the present without
  compromising the ability of future generations to
  meet their own needs

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• Sustainability applied to any industry requires
  four general considerations (Richards, 2002)
• Economic ?Environmental ?Social ?Governmental
• Sustainable does not mean
• ? renewable
• ? zero environmental impact
• ? green
• Note affects of renewable business on the
  environment
• agriculture, farming much greater land area,
  regionally much greater negative environmental
  impact
• golf courses occupy surface area greater than
  state of Delaware - 5270 km2 (herbicides,
  fertilizers)

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Capital Stocks of SD

• Economic
• Financial
• Manufactured goods and infrastructure
• Social
• Institutions
• Culture
• Environmental
• Natural (renewable nonrenewable)
• Air, water, biota, and earth resources

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SD and Aggregate

• Urban mining of aggregate
• Majority knows mining via aggregate
• Aggregate is NOT toxic
• Aggregate is needed locally
• Sterilization of aggregate resources
• Cost vs benefits (transport, pollution)
• Triple bottom line (TBL) accounting

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Taos, New Mexico

• Rural community
• Poor access from outside the region
• Very quality-of-life oriented (NIMBY)
• Bounded by restricted land
• Aggregate needs are recognized by local
  government (city and county)
• Needs not recognized by typical citizen

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Recent Events at Taos

• 2001-2002 Aggregate pit CLOSED!
• Amigos Bravos (an NGO )
• near Rio Grande Wild Scenic River
• Erroneously placed outside permitted area
• 2003-2004 Aggregate pit OPENED!
• The Taos County Commission
• upheld expansion of existing permit
• near airport, sewage plant, other pits
• against nearby homeowners

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How do we measure our success in sustainable
development in exploration?
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INDICATORS

• The amount of land available for exploration and
  development
• The number of exploration projects
• Annual drilling footage or active drill rig count
• Annual mineral leases
• The amount of dollars spent on exploration

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INDICATORScont

• The number of new mines being developed
• Reserves/resources of specific commodities
• Area reclaimed after exploration
• Number of abandoned mines reclaimed during
  exploration
• The number of mines with production of materials
  as byproducts that might otherwise be considered
  waste (especially industrial minerals, such as
  clay deposits in coal fields or porphyry
  deposits).

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For sustainability to be realized, the global
playing field must be level this requires
international law (to mandate that which is
sustainable) and economic credit (for producing a
mineral commodity in an acceptable, sustainable
fashion). Problem this is not happening, as yet.
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SUMMARY AND DISCUSSION

• What commodities have the most material mined?
• What commodities have the highest value?

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Development of the minerals cycle and the need
for minerals(MMSD)
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Development of the minerals cycle and the need
for minerals(MMSD)
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Summary and discussion

• How has the mining industry changed with time?

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USGS Circ 1221
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Eyde, 2001
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Summary and discussion

• What is the future of mining?

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NMA The future begins with mining