How is strip mining harmful to animals?

Wildlife often suffers severely as a result of strip mining. In the short term, all species are either destroyed or displaced from the area of the mine itself. Mining also may have adverse, long-term impacts on wildlife, including impairment of its habitat or native environment.

1. How does mining affect the animals?
2. How is strip mining harmful?
3. How does strip mining affect humans?
4. How coal mining affects animals?
5. What does strip mining do?
6. Why does strip mining occur?
7. How does strip mining affect the geosphere?
8. What are some consequences of mountaintop removal?
9. How does mining reclamation impact the environment?
10. How does longwall mining affect the environment?
11. What animals are affected by coal mining?
12. What ecosystem is affected by mining?
13. What animals live in coal mines?
14. What is strip mining quizlet?
15. How does mining affect the environment in South Africa?

How does mining affect the animals?

Coal mining has serious, lasting negative impacts on wildlife. In the short term, species can be killed or displaced from their habitat. In the long term, many wildlife species face severe impacts resulting from habitat destruction. ... Other impacts of coal mining include air pollution and water contamination.

How is strip mining harmful?

Strip mining destroys landscapes, forests and wildlife habitats at the site of the mine when trees, plants, and topsoil are cleared from the mining area. This in turn leads to soil erosion and destruction of agricultural land. When rain washes the loosened top soil into streams, sediments pollute waterways.

How does strip mining affect humans?

Living in heavily mined areas increases the risk of lung cancer and respiratory disease. Levels of exposure to pollution are highest in areas with the most mountaintop removal. Scientists found a direct link between dust from mountaintop removal and lung cancer.

How coal mining affects animals?

Wildlife can be impacted by habitat loss, direct death during construction, water loss and water pollution. The loss of wildlife in any local area would be a problem both for tourism and for biodiversity conservation generally.

What does strip mining do?

strip mining, removal of soil and rock (overburden) above a layer or seam (particularly coal), followed by the removal of the exposed mineral.

Why does strip mining occur?

Strip mining is used for mining phosphate fertilizer in Florida, North Carolina, and Idaho, and for obtaining gypsum (mainly for wallboard) in western states. However, the most common association of strip mining is with coal .

How does strip mining affect the geosphere?

The result of all this is barren land that stays contaminated long after a coal mine shuts down. Although many countries require reclamation plans for coal mining sites, undoing all the environmental damages to water supplies, destroyed habitats, and poor air quality is a long and problematic task.

What are some consequences of mountaintop removal?

The impacts on communities of blowing up mountains and dumping the rubble into streams are profound. It forces residents to contend with contaminated drinking water, increased flooding, dangerous coal slurry impoundments, and higher rates of cancer and other health issues.

How does mining reclamation impact the environment?

The effects can result in erosion, sinkholes, loss of biodiversity, or the contamination of soil, groundwater, and surface water by the chemicals emitted from mining processes. These processes also affect the atmosphere from the emissions of carbon which have an effect on the quality of human health and biodiversity.

How does longwall mining affect the environment?

IMPACTS FROM LONGWALL MINING

The release of methane gas into the atmosphere, water and homes. At least one home explosion has been documented as a result. Ground cracks and landslides: frequently these render the land unusable. ... Depopulation of rural areas in the coalfields where longwall mining has occurred.

What animals are affected by coal mining?

Air pollution

Sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, mercury, carbon monoxide, and arsenic are just a few of the harmful pollutants emitted by coal plants on a daily basis. These pollutants cause a variety of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases that impact not only humans, but wildlife as well.

What ecosystem is affected by mining?

Across the world, mining contributes to erosion, sinkholes, deforestation, loss of biodiversity, significant use of water resources, dammed rivers and ponded waters, wastewater disposal issues, acid mine drainage and contamination of soil, ground and surface water, all of which can lead to health issues in local ...

What animals live in coal mines?

It's worse for sedentary species like reptiles, small mammals, beavers and burrowing rodents, all of whose primary habitat is the Earth's surface. Pollution of aquatic habitats is another outcome of surface mining for coal. Wastes and chemicals from it trickle and seep into streams, rivers and underground water-bodies.

What is strip mining quizlet?

Strip Mining. -The surface cast method where overburden is moved a short distance to one side from above the ore deposit to allow the later excavation and removal of ore itself. - method to mine near surface coal seams or other mineral deposits which have low cohesive strength and have large lateral extent.

How does mining affect the environment in South Africa?

The primary impacts arise from mining, particularly underground mining, largely because South African coal mines are relatively shallow. Coal washing gives rises to large waste dumps, which may ignite spontaneously and cause air pollution. Water pollution arises from some abandoned mines and waste dumps.