Mining Questions relating to Canada’s Mineral Wealth Lecture: What kinds of rock minerals/metals do we find here in Canada? Where are these rocks found in Canada & why in those locations? How valuable is mining to Canada’s economy?

Mining Do you have some Canadian mining products with you today? Check your pocket for coins Are you wearing any nylon or fleece? Do those clothes contain zippers? What rare metallic minerals are in your cell phones? Mining is the process of extracting minerals from rocks

Mining Do you have some Canadian mining products with you today? Check your pocket for coins Are you wearing any nylon or fleece? Do those clothes contain zippers? Mining is the process of extracting minerals from rocks naturally occurring, pure, non-living substances found in rocks. Minerals are divided into 3 categories in Canada 1. Metallic refined, yielding metals 2. Fossil fuels release energy when burned 3. Industrial neither metallic or fossil fuels

Metallic Minerals

Fossil Fuels

Industrial Minerals (non-metalic minerals)

Minerals Mined in Canada by Type Metallic Mineral Fossil Fuels Industrial/ non- metallic Minerals cobalt coal asbestos copper natural gas building stone gold oil clay products iron oil sands diamonds lead gravel nickel gypsum platinum potash silver salt uranium sand zinc soapstone

Where do we mine in Canada (Location) Examine figure 26-5 on page 330 in your textbook. Choose the 3 most important provinces for each of the following: Metallic minerals Fossil Fuels Industrial minerals 1.Western Cordillera 2.Appalachians 3.Canadian Shield 1.Interior Plains 2.Great-Lakes 3.Hudson bay lowlands 4.Appalacians 1.All landform regions

Geological map of Canada

How Important is Mining to Canada’s Economy? Value of Minerals Produced in Canada in 2008  Metals - $ (or $66 billion dollars)  Non-metals - $ (or $18 billion dollars)  Fuels - $ ( or $217 billion dollars) Total of all three = $455 billion dollars ! Most valuable minerals produced :  gold,uranium (2 nd in world) and nickel (metallic)  Potash (1 st in world), diamonds & gravel (non-metallic)  Oil and coal (fuel)

How Important is Mining to Canada’s Economy?  Canada’s international mining trade, accounting for 19.2 percent of Canada’s domestic exports in  Canada continues to be the world’s leader in the production (by volume) of potash, and it ranks in the top five countries for the production of aluminum, cobalt, molybdenum, nickel, platinum group metals, salt, titanium concentrate, uranium and zinc.  Canada ranks second in the world in value of diamond production  Toronto is generally viewed as the mining finance capital of the world (Toronto’s Stock Exchange has lots of mining companies on their market index).

How Valuable is Mining to Canada?

What is this missing? Fossil Fuels

Number of Canadians working:

people directly employed in mining and mineral processing– accounted for 2.1 percent of Canada’s total employment 2009 average weekly earnings of people working directly in the mines & processing is $1,056. Weekly earnings in the Canadian economy averaged $823.

Steps to Mining in Canada

Before we start to mine Step One: High-tech prospecting

Before we start to mine Step One: High-tech prospecting Map produced after doing an airborne geo-magnetic survey

Before we start to mine Step Two: Sampling, Drilling & Assaying

Step 3 How Do We Mine? Pg 334 Strip Mining mine oil sand (bitumen), coal and other minerals located in the top layers near the surface Open Pit Mining mine minerals found near surface of earth, but also may extend deep into the ground Gravel, rock, diamonds, metallic minerals Underground Mining extract mineral ores vanes within earth Nickel in Sudbury, coal in N.S., Gold in Timmins

How Do We Mine? Mining Machines video

Issues faced by Canada’s Mining Industry : Read “Challenges for Canada’s Mining Industry”(pg ) and determine the challenges the mining industry faces in Canada and group them into the 2 columns below. Natural EnvironmentHuman Environment -Acid Rain (Precipitation) : caused by……..

Implications of Mining : Read “Challenges for Canada’s Mining Industry”(pg ) and determine the challenges the mining industry faces in Canada and group them into the 2 columns below. Natural EnvironmentHuman Environment -Environmental controls -destroy habitats, clear cutting, animal extinction -develop new technologies to improve efficiency -by products of mining unclean -harmful to environment -global warming -new and improved uses of minerals -more uses = more reasons to mine? -Land claims of First Nations -who owns the land = who profits? -Increase processing and manufacturing of minerals in Canada -”boom and bust” nature of mining -what happens to mining towns when mind closes?

To prepare for tomorrow’s class, please read the following case study, to familiarize yourself with the issue beforehand: Page Do: Questions sheet called ‘ Ekati Mine Reflection’