O: You will be able to explain how minerals are formed and mined. Do Now: How do you think minerals are formed?

Minerals form in a variety of environments in the Earth’s crust. Each of these environments has a different set of physical and chemical conditions. The environment in which a mineral forms determines the mineral’s properties.

Geologists use the term ore to describe a mineral deposit large enough and pure enough to be mined for profit. Rocks and minerals are removed from the ground by one of two methods—surface mining or subsurface mining.

Open-Pit Mining Minerals are mined from the surface. They go layer by layer in a stair like pattern.

Subsurface mining methods are used when mineral deposits are located too deep within the Earth to be surface mined. Subsurface mining often requires that passageways be dug into the Earth to reach the ore.

Mining Problems Mining can cause pollution. It can also damage the land. It can disturb natural habitats of plants and animals native to the area.

Possible Solutions Reducing the amount of minerals we consume. Reclamation is returning the land to the state it was before they mined it.

Mineral Uses Copper electrical wire, plumbing, coins Diamond jewelry, cutting tools Galena batteries, ammunition Gibbsite cans, foil, appliances, Gold jewelry, computers, spacecraft Gypsum wallboards, plaster, Halite nutrition, highway de-icer Quartz glass, computer chips Silver photography, electronics products Sphalerite jet aircraft, spacecraft

Homework 1. Where do minerals come from? 2. What are the two mining methods used to extract ore? 3. How does reclamation help the land?