Mining, Metal
SIC 1000
NAICS 212
Metal mining firms explore the earth for numerous metallic minerals (ores), construct mines, and extract the ores for processing. Notable examples of metal ores mined throughout the world are: aluminum, copper, gold, iron, lead, manganese, nickel, silver, tin, and zinc.
After the materials are extracted from the earth, many industry firms also perform separation or other basic processing on ores, but the manufacture of finished or intermediate metal products, such as through smelting or refining, is not considered part of the mining industry. For discussion of the numerous forms of metal production, see also the chapter entitled Metals Manufacturing.
The metal mining industry is truly international in scope with various countries around the world having a prominent presence in one or more metal mining sectors. While the largest countries, including China, Canada, the United States, and Brazil, typically have been able to parlay their vast natural resources into significant economic roles in mining segments, smaller countries have been important players as well.
But China's role in the industry was particularly notable; its dynamic and growing economy had a huge impact on the industry. By the mid 2000s it had emerged as a world leader in both production and consumption of mined metals. China was the global leader in zinc, and iron ore production, as well as a major source of copper, gold and lead. It also lead the world in copper and zinc consumption, while its consumption of iron ore, lead, and gold substantially increased world demand for these metals.
In early 2000s, mineral ore production continued to serve as a cornerstone of the global economy. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, mine copper production was estimated at 14.5 million metric tons (mt) in 2004, while production of iron ore was estimated at 1.25 billion mt. Production levels for other industry metals in 2004 included gold (2,470 mt); nickel (1.40 million mt); silver (19.5 mt); zinc (9.1 million mt); and aluminum (28.9 million mt). According to Mbendi Information Services Ltd., a South African business publishing and consulting firm, the global mining industry produced over 6 billion tons of raw product in 2001 valued at several trillion dollars.
Although metal mining is one of the oldest human industries, during the early 2000s it was still characterized by a vigorous search for new sources of unmined ores, new mining technologies, and new markets for ores. By 2000 worldwide exploration for new precious metal mines spent US$2.7 billion. Environmental activists, however, continued to condemn the mining industry because certain mining activities can and do destroy natural habitats and pollute the ground. For example, an accident in 2000 at the Freeport McMoRan Copper and Gold Grasper mine in Indonesia killed several workers and dumped contaminated water into the Wamego River, thus contaminating the surrounding water supply.
Mining methods vary depending on the mineral, its location, and the ratio of extraction costs to the mineral's revenue potential. The three major types of mining methods are surface, alluvial, and underground mining.
Open-pit bench mining and open-pit strip mining involve the extraction of massive deposits that are housed at or near the planet's surface. This method can be used in almost any kind of terrain. Touted by supporters as cost-effective, efficient, and safer than underground mining, critics decry the environmental impact of such methods.
Alluvial mining is employed to find minerals that are mixed with silt, sand, gravel, and other materials commonly found in the vicinity of creeks, rivers, and lakes, while underground mining is used to locate and harvest minerals buried deep beneath the earth's surface. Although underground mining practices reduce the impact on the surface environment and allow operations to proceed in inclement weather, this method is more hazardous to workers, requires more equipment, and is not always ideal for extracting some deposits. Also, production costs of other methods are much higher than those incurred by underground mining operations.
The modern-style metal mining industry began in the nineteenth century, although metal ores had been mined for several millennia before that time. Iron, copper, tin, and gold had all been mined with varying degrees of success and effectiveness. The Industrial Revolution, however, transformed the economies of developed countries and introduced iron, coal, and limestone as strategically important minerals. Practical steam-powered machinery increased the demand for coal and iron, while breakthroughs in the 1850s enabled inexpensive production of large amounts of steel.
The discovery of gold in California in 1848 proved to be an important factor in the settlement of the western United States. The discovery of significant deposits of silver, gold, and copper made the United States a world leader in metal mining by the beginning of the twentieth century. At the same time that prospectors were fanning out across the United States in search of gold, major discoveries of other metals were made around the world.
Moreover, researchers during the last century found new uses for industrial metals. Advanced economies such as those in Europe and North America increasingly relied on industrial metal mining. While these regions led the world in mining production and the broader metal industry, by the mid-1900s a number of other industrializing nations, notably the Soviet Union, emerged as important metal mining centers.
Mining has long been one of the world's most dangerous industries. While the majority of mining injuries and deaths have historically taken place in coal mines—nearly 3,200 men died in coal mine accidents in the United States in 1907 alone—a significant number of workers have been injured or killed in metal mining operations as well. Even in the mid-1970s, after a number of laws and regulations were enacted, about 8,300 disabling injuries were reported per year in metal and nonmetal mines (not including coal mines) in the United States. In countries with less stringent safety laws, accidents are more common. In 1995, 100 workers were killed in one gold mine accident in South Africa. Rock falls, haulage accidents, methane explosions, mishaps with machinery, and suffocation have all caused loss of life.
The first federal mine safety legislation in the United States, which was the principal mining nation in the world at the time, was primarily concerned with coal mining. The Organic Act of 1910, which created the U.S. Bureau of Mines, was passed in reaction to a series of horrible coal mine explosions. Other legislation in the first half of the twentieth century was also passed, but most of these laws had little real power. In 1952, however, the Federal Coal Mine Safety Act was passed. Under this act safety regulations were made mandatory and inspectors were given added powers. Two other bills, the Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969 and the Federal Metal and Nonmetallic Mine Safety Act of 1966, became the primary safety codes for all mining in the United States. In 1973 the Mining Enforcement and Safety Administration (MESA) was created to oversee the U.S. industry.
The status of the metal mining sectors continued to vary at the start of the new millennium. Factors such as world demand, privatization, environmental concerns and regulations, economic conditions in producer countries, labor relations, and trade agreements all affected the metal mining industry and its various segments. The mining industry was also dependent on the strength and economic trends of many industries including those related to appliances, autos, beverages, and computers. The industry's outlook, however, remained strong due to consumer reliance and demand for many products and services that rely on mining activities. In fact, as of the early 2000s, according to the Office of Industrial Technologies, nearly 47,000 pounds of materials must be mined for each person living in the United States in order to maintain their standard of living.
In response to these trends and factors, the industry...
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