subject: Is Gold Prospecting Harmful To Environment? [print this page] Gold mining industry has grown since it started thousands of years ago. New gold mining companies are being formed each day as other gold mining grounds are being discovered. Gold, being a precious metal is very much on demand. Unfortunately many do not stop to ask themselves just how mining can affect the ecosystem
About eighteen tons of ore are required to produce a single ring of gold. Gold may be very stunning to the eye that's why it is very expensive. However, its mining can cause devastating effects to the environment. Gold prospecting involves many processes which include gold planning, extraction, and so on.
The process of gold mining involves creation of tunnels, drainage of hard metals into the environment. Sometimes gold mining companies dump the remains after mining into rivers and streams and this negatively affects aquatic life. Facts about how it affects the ecosystem have not been widely publicized because; if anything those who buy gold are very few.
Gold prospecting starts when mines are blasted so that workers can gain access to the gold deposits. To create open mines, explosives have to be used such as dynamite. This can easy cause havoc miles a way to nay existing ecosystem. Tunnels are created by use of excavation. Open tunnels and mines can be very destructive and are usually the root cause for landmines. Once a gold mine has been created, the rocks have to be destroyed to create clear pathways for miners. Waste rock is usually piled near the mine because getting rid of al of it becomes a problem.
When rocks are piled up together, they pose great danger to the environment. Rocks contain lot of sulfur and if left in the open can easily cause production of acid rain. Acid rain consequently washes down the metals on rocks which can be very harmful to ecosystem.
Heap leaching is a process that involves separation of precious metal from rock-ore. Pieces of metals that are left after gold has been extracted are then grinded and irrigated into cyanide. Cyanide is then dumped along with other hard metals. Gold prospecting as explained above is very dangerous and a debate is going on whether it is necessary to mine gold yet very few people buy gold.
