y u mine? Such Drill! Much Frack!
Brian Hewitt
Mining
The 3 types of surface mining are Strip Mining, Open Pit Mining, and Mountaintop Removal Mining. Strip mining is removal of soil and rock above a layer or seam followed by the removal of exposed minerals. It is used mostly for mining coal. Strip mining causes erosion, can damage roads and homes and pollute or drain ground water. Open Pit Mining is an excavation or cut made at the surface of the ground for the purpose of extracting ore and which is open to the surface for the duration of the mine’s life. Open Pit Mining is used primarily for metal ores, copper, gold, iron, aluminum, Hard Rock and Coal. Open Pit Mines are bad because they leave big holes that can effect the flow of surface and groundwater and the level of the water table. Mountaintop Removal Mining is is any method of surface coal mining that destroys a mountaintop or ridge line. This form of mining is mostly used for mining coal. During Mountaintop removal all the rock and minerals are thrown into valley fills. Water in these fills carry more minerals and high selenium concentrations. 3 types of sub surface mining are quarrying, solution mining, and longwall mining. Quarrying is an excavation or pit, usually open to the air, from which building stone, slate, that is obtained by cutting, and blasting. Quarrying causes Air and water pollution, some of the waste is toxic. Quarries are used for mining stone. Solution Mining is used for water soluble minerals like salt. You pump dilute acid solution into the deposit and the minerals will dissolve into the solution and then you pump it out to get the minerals from it. One of the issues with it is acid can get in the ground water. Longwall mining is when there is a wall of coal and a tunnel boor mines out the wall in one slice. It deteriorates the ground water quality and causes shock waves.
Both types of mining appear to either erode, or effect ground water. Surface mines cause erosion and can effect the water table while sub surface mines cause damage to ground water.
Fracking is when you drill and inject fluid into the ground at a high pressure to fracture shale rocks and release natural gas. Gasses from the fracking are often accidentally released into the ground water contaminating it. Fracking is used to obtain natural gasses.
Drilling
On land vs at Sea
Drilling on land on on sea is very similar. Drilling on land is simply drilling down to the oil and pumping it out. While drilling pressure is exerted to contain what they are drilling for. Drilling at Sea is the same except the base is on a platform either floating or directly attached to the seabed. They need support/help from divers to get to the seabed but once at the seabed drilling is the same.