Category: Coal Mining

‘The Hole Story’, by Richard Desjardins and Robert Monderie, is a charged and heavily biased point of view documentary about mining practices and communities affected by mining in Northern Ontario and Quebec. The documentary is intrinsically linked to an environmental justice-oriented agenda, and while the topic of the documentary is of importance to Ontarians and Quebecois, the documentary itself is unfortunately unfocused and lacks the critical thinking required to fully do justice to the topic.

About This Movie

‘The Hole Story’ is a heavily biased and emotional against the mining companies. Therefore, this is a point of view style documentary. This is shown by its narrative language choice and negative manipulation towards interview subjects that disagreed with the filmmaker’s arguments.

First, the language choice is intended to reflect and reinforce the opinions of the filmmakers. The use of adjectives such as ‘spinelessness’ to describe the government’s shortcomings and referring to strike-breaking workers by the derogatory term of ‘scabs’, are indicative of a preconceived and intentional bias.

Second, the belittling of those opposed to the filmmaker’s agenda during interviews shows the bias conveyed by the movie. When interviewing the director of the Department of the Environment for Abitibi-Témiscamingue region, the filmmakers followed the short interview footage with the dismissive narrated comment “her job really consists of handing out licenses to pollute”.

Additionally, the directors, Desjardins and Monderie, have a history of politically charged documentary filmmaking. Thus, the charged nature of this movie is similar in style to their past work.

Key Messages

The documentary has three key messages that relate to their environmental justice agenda. The first message is that mining practices in northern Ontario and Quebec negatively impact the health of nearby communities and the environment. An example of this message is when the movie reveals that a 1960s Sudbury mining workers union movement was fueled by the findings that half of its members, in addition to one third of Sudbury’s population, died younger than the national average due to exposure to harmful materials and chemicals in the mines. The rally is a good example of workers fighting for environmental justice movement’s first principle, as explained by Robert Bullard in ‘Environmental Justice in the 21st Century’, which is that all people have the right to be protected from the harmful effects of environmental degradation.

The second point is that mining corporations in northern Ontario and Quebec are an example of the tragedy of the commons, in that they exploit abundant Canadian resources, to the detriment of Canadian citizens, without adequately investing, or giving back to the communities. An example is the interview with Sudbury’s mayor, in which he describes trying to get funding from the mining companies for necessary infrastructure as a form of ‘begging’. This is a key example of the tragedy of the commons that the mining companies are partaking in. They degrade the land, take the resources and wealth, and negligently put nothing back into the community, to the extent that the mayor of Sudbury must beg for money to fix the problems that the companies created.

Third and finally, is the argument that the government should enforce tighter regulations and taxation on mining operations. An example of this message is shown using an interview with a mining expert at a convention who explains that due to the lax nature of mining regulations and laws, Quebec is a highly profitable area to conduct mining operations. This is a clear indicator that the Canadian government does not put enough resources into the conducting of regulatory science for mining operations, thus making it easier for the corporations to exploit the wealth of the regions.

Effectiveness

The movie is very effective at conveying specific messages, but overall lacks the cohesion and focus in which to keep its audience entertained. Individual segments of the movie are very effective at creating empathy for negatively affected community members, while evoking hatred towards the mining companies. Examples of this emotional manipulation include the interview with the upset father holding his child while discussing how bad the living conditions of the town are, and the juxtaposition of an interview with a mining executive framed against an unpleasant looking tailing pipe in the background. The framings and settings of each interview are used to discretely manipulate the emotional reactions of the viewers beyond what is verbally being said on the screen.

However, despite these clever tactics of emotional manipulation, the movie lacks cohesion in the communication of its key points. Individual interviews and segments of the film stand alone as effective persuasion tools, but there are too many independent segments for the audience to focus on. This draws attention away from any one topic, and instead, dilutes the significance of each point.

Conclusion

The movie itself has valid points and strong content, and it is an important topic for Ontarians and Quebecois alike. The unsafe working conditions and environmental degradation of mining operations is a well-known and historic issue that Sudbury and INCO have played key roles in. It is unfortunate that the documentary falls flat when communicating their arguments. The documentary would have benefited from a decreased runtime, and a focusing of its messages. As it stands, the movie attempts to tackle too much at once to be effective at communicating any one argument in a memorable fashion.

Bibliography

1. Bullard, Robert. ‘Environmental Justice in the 21st Century’. Compiled by David Schlosberg and John S. Dryzek. In ‘Debating the Earth: The Environmental Politics Reader’, 431-49. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005.
2. Brocking, Stephen. ‘Science and Canadian Environmental Policy’. Compiled by Debora VanNijnatten. In ‘Canadian Environmental Policy and Politics: The Challenges of Austerity and Ambivalence’, 97-111. 4th ed. Toronto, Ontario: Oxford University Press, 2016.
3. Forest Alert. Directed by Richard Desjardins and Robert Monderie. Canada: National Film Board, 1999.
4. The Hole Story: The Real Cost of Mining in Canada. Directed by Richard Desjardins and Robert Monderie. Narrated by Richard Desjardins. National Film Board. 2011. Accessed February 10, 2019. https://www.nfb.ca/film/hole_story/
5. The Invisible Nation. Directed by Richard Desjardins and Robert Monderie. Performed by Richard Desjardins. Canada: National Film Board, 2007. Film. November 30, 2012. Accessed February 17, 2019. https://www.nfb.ca/film/invisible_nation/

Water Pollution

Encylopedia Britinnica defines “Water pollution is the release of substances into subsurface groundwater or into lakes, streams, rivers, estuaries, and oceans to the point where the substances interfere with beneficial use of the water or with the natural functioning of ecosystems. In addition to the release of substances, such as chemicals or microorganisms, water pollution may also include the release of energy, in the form of radioactivity or heat, into bodies of water.”

Water is an essential component of life. Of all the water present on Earth, only about 1% is available as freshwater and can be exploited by humans. Rapid growth of civilization has posed great threat to purity and availability of freshwater. Human health is adversaly affected by polluted drinking water. In the developing countries, about five million children die due to unhealthy drinking water supply. This situation is getting worse each day due to population growth. In Pakistan, according to estimates, 30% of all diseases and 40% of all deaths occur due to poor water quality. The main cause of waterborne here are the addition of municipal sewage and industrial wastewater to drinking water supply.

Sources Of Water Pollution

Water pollutants are released from two sources; point sources and dispersed sources. A point source is a pipe or channel, mostly used for to discharge waste from an industrial facility or sewerage system. The dispersed source is a open, broad, unused area from which pollutants get to the water body, for example runoff from agricultural lands. Point sources of water pollution are easier to control than dispersed sources because of its being present in a single place. It can be treated. On the other hand, pollution from dispersed sources are hard to control. There has been much development in cities sewerage system building but pollution control is still a major concern.

Mining

Mining is defined by Encyclopedia Britinnica as “Mining, process of extracting useful minerals from the surface of the Earth, including the seas. A mineral, with a few exceptions, is an inorganic substance occurring in nature that has a definite chemical composition and distinctive physical properties or molecular structure. Mineral deposit designates a natural occurrence of a useful mineral, while ore deposit denotes a mineral deposit of sufficient extent and concentration to invite exploitation.”

Mining has played an integral role in the development of civilizations. However, it also has left a negative legacy which has influenced our perception of it. Materials extracted from a mining source are about 95% wastes. These waste are left behind and can impact the environment in many ways.

Surface Mining

It has been estimated that more than two-thirds of the world’s yearly mineral production comes from surface mining. Three most common types of surface mining are open-pit mining, strip mining, and quarrying. Each type differs from the other in location of mining, mining techniques used and the types of minerals extracted.

Underground Mining

Some ore body lie at a considerable distance downward the surface, the amount of soil and other unwanted materials or waste has to be removed so to get to the ore are done by underground techniques. The negatives of underground mining are the costs, which could possibly be much higher than surface mining.

Placer Mining

Placers are unconsolidated deposits of detrital material containing valuable minerals. They form from the action of natural processes of chemical weathering to stream, marine, and wind action. Common minerals extracted in placers mining are gold, tin, platinum, diamonds, iron sands, gemstones, and abrasives; minerals of high specific gravity and physical hardness due to their chemical composition.

Mining plays a very essential role for human life. Human development is mainly measured by its technological advancement in mining and metallurgy: human life moved through the Stone Age to Bronze Age, and much later into the Iron Age. The industrial revolution was linked with growth in coal, copper, iron and tin mining; the Atomic Age was partially determined through progress in how to mine and isolate radium, uranium and other radioactive mined materials. Smartphones – the symbol of our post-industrial period- could not exist in portable form without tantalum. This all has only been possible because of mining.

About 5000 years ago, Pharaohs had mining excursions to the isolated Sinai with thousands of miners, troops, engineers and managers. Engineering complexity was developing in Spain long ago in some 2000 years ago, Romans sourced river water 60 miles from gold mining complexes for extensive hydraulicking in the Rio Tinto area, exploiting resources which had been developed by Iberians and Phoenicians over previous millennia. These operations which were ought to raise environmental controversies and criticism were developed ages ago, including not only hydraulicking but also extensive stripmining in Sussex during Roman times, metallurgical extraction using highly caustic materials, and harsh labor practices such as slavery in Cornwall.

In the 1950s, residences of the industrial town Minamata, Japan suffered many deaths and disease which were attributed to eating fish contaminated with mercury from the nearby chemical factory. In the 1960s the metallurgical industry was severely blamed for its SO2 emissions. Environmentalism movements saw a rapid growth during 1960 to 1970. People become more aware of the diverse affects of industries. The situation turned intolerable and authorties had to shut many plants and make rules and litigations to control pollution. Once the symbol of progress, was now seen as a disaster by masses.

Mining Industries and Water Pollution

Mining activities affect health via water through: the method of extraction (for example health effects on children of panning for gold in the Amazon or use of cyanide to leach heavy metals); contamination of local water sources, as well as having harmful effects on the environment such as beach erosion from sand mining or by longer term effects on reducing biodiversity or fish populations. The health effects may be far away from the mining source, as demonstrated in studies of methylmercury poisoning in the Amazon: mercury levels in head hair were studied in residents of three fishing villages on the Tapajos River, an effluent of the Amazon, several hundred kilometres from the gold mining areas. Many had high mercury levels in addition to symptoms suggesting neurotoxic disease. Further, 0.064 ppt is the EPA recommended surface water human health criterion for waters inhabited by fish for human consumption. Consumption of contaminated fish is one of the major routes of human exposure. While there have been improvements to mining practices in recent years, significant environmental risks remain. Negative impacts can vary from the sedimentation caused by poorly built roads during exploration through to the sediment, and disturbance of water during mine construction. Water pollution from mine waste rock and tailings may need to be managed for decades, if not centuries, after closure. These impacts depend on a variety of factors, such as the sensitivity of local terrain, the composition of minerals being mined, the type of technology employed, the skill, knowledge and environmental commitment of the company, and finally, our ability to monitor and enforce compliance with environmental regulations. One of the problems is that mining has become more mechanized and therefore able to handle more rock and ore material than ever before. Therefore, mine waste has multiplied enormously. As mining methods are developed to make it more profitable to mine low grade ore, even more waste will be generated in the future.

Types of Water Pollution from Mining Industries

There are four main types of water pollution resulted from mining industries

Acid Mine Drainages

One of the major source of water containment is Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) or Acid Rock Drainage (ARD). Acid rock drainage is also linked to high total dissolved solids (TDS), high sulphates and heavy metals; manganese, iron, nickel, and cobalt. AMD mostly occurs at mining sites. Rock containing sulphide minerals excavated from mines create sulphuric acid by reacting with water and oxygen. This process gets accelerated by a certain naturally occurring bacteria Thiobacillus Ferroxidams when water reaches a certain degree of acidity. Acid would leach from rock as long as it is exposed to water or air. It gets into drinking water supplies. It affects water quality and pose sever threat to acquatic life.

Among many mine waste problems, acid mine drainage is the hardest to deal with. It degrades both surface and groundwater quality. It posses a long term pollution containimation as release of AMD would continue even after mines are closed. The production of AMD usually, but not exclusively – occurs in iron 619 sulfide-aggregated rocks. Although this process occurs naturally, mining promotes AMD formation simply by increasing the quantity of sulphides exposed.

Releases of AMD have low pH but high electrical conductivity with increased concentrations of toxic heavy metals. AMD also affects soil quality, pollute aquatic sediments and fauna, and releases heavy metals in the environment.

AMD follows the same flow pathways as water; best way to control AMD is by controlling entry of water in affected sites, prevention of hydrological seepage into the affected areas and controlled placement of acidgenerating wastes. Under-drains can be installed in locations of the dumps, and the infiltration by meteoric water can be further retarded through the use of sealing layers.

Introduction

The research area is based on how construction contracts and procurement techniques are used in project of Coal India Ltd. CIL is a Maharatna and Indian state-owned company of coal mining and refinery. The main headquarter of Coal India Ltd is in Kolkata, West Bengal. 82% of coal is produced in India by CIL. It is in the 8th position in terms of market value among the Indian companies. CIL has many subsidiaries where CIL produces most of its coals. There are a total of 7 subsidiaries of CIL. The names of coal subsidiaries companies are: –

1. Eastern Coal Fields limited.
2. Bharat Coal Coking limited.
3. Central Coalfields Limited.
4. Western coalfields limited.
5. Southeastern coalfields limited.
6. Northern coalfield limited.
7. Mahanadi coalfield limited.

The aim of this project is to find out the types of contracts used in the coal mining sector during its construction. To study Different procurement contracts or routes such as fixed-price contracts, time and materials. In this report, we will also see how parties should consider more detail in work than the complex methods, and how to choose a certain type of contract in the industry. Next, we will take some live cases of the coal mining sector and analyze its data, for example, Chitra Coal mine(A & B). We will discuss Solid waste management, disposal practice, pollution control measures in a conversation of natural resources, Air pollution control, noise and vibration control measures, etc. all will be discussed thoroughly along with the details. We will also see what type of contract has been adopted in this coalfield and analyses which will be the best for both parties, i.e. contractor and Employer.

According to Planning management book of knowledge, the procurement process involves planning, executing, monitor, & controlling different phases of the project. The relationship between clients, consultants, contractors, etc is also highlighted. Policies for procurement in coal mining are for micro and small enterprises, special provisions for small enterprise, price quotation are also stated in the manual of the Coal India. Source: – (Coal India, 2010)

Fig 1: – Image of CIL (Coal, 2012)

Aim: –

To suggest the best contract for mining construction, procurement routes, techniques, how to purchase materials, types of equipment used in mining construction, etc.

Project Objectives: –

• To analyze procurement practices and routes for coal mining.
• To analyze the best contract for coal mining construction.
• To analyze and prevention of fire in coal mines.
• Equipment used in coal mining, their functions, exports, and equipment cost in the coal mining sector.

Literature Review

· What are the types of contracts used in mining construction and choosing the best contract?

This research paper discusses Construction Contracts and procurement management in Coal Mining in India. The main authority of coal mining in India is governed by Coal India Ltd. There are many subsidiary companies under Coal India Ltd., they are Eastern coalfields, Mahanadi Coalfields, Central Coalfields, Western coalfields, Bharat Coking Coal, etc. Firstly, we will see how the construction contract and law take place in mining and assessing the relationship between the contractor and Employer. We will see how the contract is choosed among 3 main contracts, such as -lump-sum Contract, Cost-plus Contract, Target-Plus Contract, etc. To study the various factors such as preferred risk allocation by the parties, ability to adapt the contract to scope changes, knowledge about each contract type by the contracting parties, improvement in project delivery by contract type, and aim to improve cooperation among parties. Factors such as financial costs, dispute costs of contract types and need for financial information by the stakeholders of the parties are also analyzed. To study Different procurement contracts or routes such as fixed-price contracts, cost-reimbursable, time and materials. In this report, we will also see how parties should consider more detail in work than the complex methods, and how to choose a certain type of contract in the industry. Source: – (Calderón, n.d.)

· Any example of a live mining project with details?

One of the live cases analyzed in this journal called the Chitra Coal mining project, which is situated in Eastern Coalfields of India, was discovered in 1975, and after that, the main authority nationalized it and named Chitra A and Chitra B coal fields. From these coal fields, the production of coal ranges from 1.2 to 2.50 MTY and coal reserve of 60.5 MTY in each Chitra coal quarries. The estimated life of the project is 26 years. Later in project Environmental qualities, Air quality in coal mines, water quality, noise level, etc. will be discussed later. Solid waste management, disposal practice, pollution control measures in a conversation of natural resources, Air pollution control, noise and vibration control measures, etc. all will be discussed thoroughly along with the details. We will also see what type of contract has been adopted in this coalfield and analyses which will be the best for both parties, i.e. contractor and Employer. Source: – (Mining, n.d.)

· What are the types of mining construction equipment are used?

Next, we will see what kind of equipment is used in Mining Construction. In this research paper, it mainly discusses about the function of the equipment in excavating, ground preparation, haulage for material, dumping/laying in a specified manner, etc. Exports for mining and construction equipment costs in different countries will also be analyzed along with details and data. Various equipment used in coal mining areas such as,” Dumpers, dozers, hydraulic excavatars, rope shovels, draglines, drills, wheel loaders, continuous miners, etc” Source: – (Mining, n.d.)

· What is procurement practice in coal mining projects?

Public procurement Management or material Management as documented and handled by Coal India Limited will be discussed in the project in detail. First, various policies documented in the manual are as follows,” Procurement for micro and small enterprises, special provisions for small and micro enterprises, reporting of targets, quotation in a tender od pricing, review comitte, reduction in transaction cost, monitoring of goals, etc”. Source: – (procurement, n.d.)

· What are the techniques used for purchasing materials and items in coal mining construction?

Next is the Purchase Manual of Coal India Limited. The main objective of the manual are,” gaining brief knowlwdge of organisation, policies for purchasing, adverstisemnt of tenders, provisions for safety of items, registration of suppliers for safety of items, rating of vendors, enquiry of tenders, follow procedure, Follow-up and monitor progress, payment to the suppliers, various laws and regulations for purchase, etc.” Source: – (CIL, n.d.)

· What are the techniques used for fire prevention of coal mining construction?

Recent Developments and practices to control fire in underground coal mines, as discussed in the research article will be discussed in the project. Coal mine fires cause a serious threat to the property and human lives. The outbreak of fire may be dealt with advanced fire suppression techniques like Infusion of inert gases or liquid nitrogen, Dynamic Balancing of pressure, Reversal of underground mine ventilation, Application of nitrogen foam, Water mist, etc. The paper addresses all those control techniques in detail. The success stories of controlling fires in coal mines of different parts of the world are reported. Results of a recently completed Science & Technology (S&T) project about various fire suppression techniques like Infusion of liquid nitrogen, Injection of high-pressure high stability nitrogen foam, and Water mist on open fire are also discussed.

Keywords: – Nitrogen Foam, coal mine fire, infusion of inert gas, Inertisation of goaf and water mist, underground mine ventilation, etc. Source: – (UK, n.d.)

References

1. Calderón, D. S., n.d. types of contract. [Online] Available at: diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1118726/FULLTEXT02
2. CIL, P., n.d. Purchase Manual. [Online] Available at: https://www.coalindia.in/DesktopModules/DocumentList/documents/purchase.pdf
3. Coal India, w., 2010. Wikipedia. [Online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal_India [Accessed 7 02 2020].
4. Coal, 2012. Dumping CIL. [Online] Available at: https://www.google.com/search?q=coal+mining+projects&sxsrf=ACYBGNTnCjAYECLgQjRfstyDDNW3T9lV6w:1580746049234&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj2o_r14bXnAhXR6nMBHUgGDi0Q_AUoAnoECAsQBA&biw=1366&bih=576#imgrc=QrmBYIb-4jKmFM
5. Mining, n.d. Indian mining and equipments. [Online] Available at: https://miningandblasting.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/indian-mining-construction-equipment-industry.pdf
6. procurement, C., n.d. Procurement Manual. [Online] Available at: https://www.coalindia.in/DesktopModules/DocumentList/documents/Public_Procurement_policy_Micro_Small_Enter_Order_2012_13022014.pdf
7. UK, G. o., n.d. Health and safety executive. [Online] Available at: https://www.hse.gov.uk/mining/feguidance.pdf
8. Calderón, D. S., n.d. types of contract. [Online] Available at: diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1118726/FULLTEXT02
9. CIL, P., n.d. Purchase Manual. [Online] Available at: https://www.coalindia.in/DesktopModules/DocumentList/documents/purchase.pdf
10. Coal, 2012. Dumping CIL. [Online] Available at: https://www.google.com/search?q=coal+mining+projects&sxsrf=ACYBGNTnCjAYECLgQjRfstyDDNW3T9lV6w:1580746049234&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj2o_r14bXnAhXR6nMBHUgGDi0Q_AUoAnoECAsQBA&biw=1366&bih=576#imgrc=QrmBYIb-4jKmFM
11. Mining, n.d. Indian mining and equipments. [Online] Available at: https://miningandblasting.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/indian-mining-construction-equipment-industry.pdf
12. procurement, C., n.d. Procurement Manual. [Online] Available at: https://www.coalindia.in/DesktopModules/DocumentList/documents/Public_Procurement_policy_Micro_Small_Enter_Order_2012_13022014.pdf
13. UK, G. o., n.d. Health and safety executive. [Online] Available at: https://www.hse.gov.uk/mining/feguidance.pdf

Australia is among the world’s largest coal exporters (Engelfried, 2018), and Adani is one of the biggest coal mining companies. Coal mining is an activity that brings a significant source of income into the Australian economy; however, there are many environmental impacts associated with it. The operations of Adani mine in Townsville is of significant concern to residents because it will affect the city’s natural ecosystem and environment.

Adani mining infrastructure may be a source of drought in their neighbouring areas as it uses a lot of water during mining, and they use more water to clean their mined materials. They use underground water that is to be used by farmers; therefore, crops die, and surrounding water tables shrink. For instance, Adani coal mines in Central Queensland uses approximately 12.5 billion litres of water per year (Slezak, 2018). If only there were no mining in the area, then the crops would grow well, and there would not be a shortage of water leading to drought (Windsor, 2019). Therefore, Adani’s coal mining must be minimised for the sake of the environment.

Coal mining release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, which contributes to climate change and consequently disrupts the ecosystem. Coal is a fossil fuel, and it emits greenhouse gases into the atmosphere that cause global warming (ETH Zurich;, 2019). Global warming is the most significant driver of climate change. Adani mines are some of the largest coal mines in Australia, and it releases about 4.7 billion tonnes of carbon pollution over its lifetime (Australian Marine Conservation Society). Its continuous operation will continue to spike temperature levels in Australia, which is already the sunniest continent on earth. The Australian Bureau of Meteorology reported that the summer of 2018- 2019 was hottest on record, which also led to droughts and heatwaves (Doyle, 2019).The climate changes will continue to cause unprecedented heatwaves, increase drought periods and incidences of catastrophic bush fires which are already a massive crisis.

Adani’s mining activities release gases that contribute to air, land and water pollution in the regions surrounding the mines. Coal releases methane and carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and they are both greenhouse gases (NSW Government). Firstly, a combination of these gases released from coal mining when dissolved, they cause in acidic rains which are corrosive. Acidic rains affect vegetation by discouraging growth. Secondly, the gases pollute the air affecting the quality of air that human beings and animals breathe, leading to health issues. Finally, mining uses chemicals during the mining processes, the chemicals from mines that are close to water sources contaminate water bodies and destroy marine life (Australian Marine Conservation Society). The aquatic organisms at the Great Barrier Reef are endangered as they have nowhere else to go once the water is polluted. The directly and indirectly affected communities need to take action to combat the rate at which the environment is being polluted.

Adani attracts many jobseekers, thereby causing high demand for accommodation in its mining regions. People start land clearance to pave the way for constructions in the areas, thus destroying nature. Deforestation and destruction of animal habitat are imminent as mining activities attract more people to the mining regions. Moreover, when the minerals are finished in that area, they abandon the area leaving it exposed with infertile soil, unable to recover. Many animals lost their habitat due to this Adani Carmichael coal mines, especially the marine habitat. Residents of mining towns and cities can expect further land clearance and deforestation as mining activities increase.

People are not taking the effects of mining seriously because they are blinded by money. Coal mining is a source of income, so it is definitely impossible to stop coal mining, but we can definitely reduce the adverse effects of coal mining on the environments. To do so, firstly, every individual must take part in solving this crisis because these effects affect us all as Australians. The following recommendations describe how can minimise the extent to which Adani’s mining activities affect Australia.

Firstly, as we cannot stop the mining, it would be better if local and federal governments work with mining companies, environmental sustainability advocates and unions covering mine workers to enforce measures against pollution. When companies finish mining, they should adequately fill in the mines and make sure that they eliminate all contaminants and ensure proper disposal of chemicals. This will increase that probability of vegetation recovery after mines shutdown. The government should also follow up on reports of dumped toxic wastes to prevent people from repeatedly abandoning mining sites unattended and unsafe for local inhabitants. Furthermore, they must enforce laws on the acceptable yearly carbon footprints by Adani coal mines and thoroughly audit their sustainability reports.

Secondly, deforestation can only be prevented if we cooperate with one goal, and that is to save all life. I want to recommend the following procedures that could either control deforestation or prevent it. Australian towns and cities around Adani coal mines must minimise deforestation to realise the Australian dream of owning stand-alone properties with huge backyards. Instead, the local councils must invest in building apartments and high rise buildings to accommodate the increasing populations of people attracted by mines.

Trees and vegetation are the most important because they absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which is one of the greenhouse gases that cause climate changes. They also remove pollutants, so they are highly essential in this crisis. Trees are also able to reduce heat by five to eight degrees; therefore, they play an indispensable role. In that case, we must educate people on the importance of trees and practice reafforestation and afforestation. Besides, Adani must have an obligatory commitment to afforestation and reafforestation by having departments that are dedicated to planting trees and vegetation around their mining communities. If we are unable to reduce any other effects of coal mining, then tree planting will be our only hope.

Thirdly, people are to be educated on climate change and its effects on the environment. In that case, using renewable energy sources should be promoted so that we control the number of fossil fuels needed because they release greenhouse gases. Using renewable energy is cheaper than using fossil fuels. This can be done through public campaigns, public speaking and spreading the education to raise awareness about climate change and how renewable energy can replace the mining of fossil fuels. Climate change is already happening, and it will worsen over time if we do not take emergency action. Even if we decide to ignore it now, no one can escape climate changes when the as long as companies like Adani continue to mine coal at large scales.

Imagine how bad it will be in Australia with warmer summers than 2019, no marine life in the Great Barrier Reef, without kangaroos and koalas. The worst is yet to come if Adani continues to mine coal at such a large scale if we do not implement and enforce environmental sustainability measures. Mother Theresa said ‘We know only too well that what we are doing is nothing more than a drop in the ocean. But if the drop were not there, the ocean would be missing something.’ (Juma, 2020). If we help each other to prevent climate changes, air and environmental pollution even in smallest possible ways that reduce coal mining; we can survive together and preserve our ecosystems. It takes a collective effort of the community, Adani and the government to ensure that Australia’s future generations enjoy the living in favourable conditions. Let’s try our best and balance both making money from mining and protecting the environment and wildlife.

References

1. Australian Marine Conservation Society. (n.d.). Fight for our Reef. Retrieved May 21, 2020, from Australian Marine Conservation Society: https://www.marineconservation.org.au/fight-for-our-reef/
2. Doyle, K. (2019, February 28). Summer 2018-19 was hottest on record, BOM says, with little relief expected for autumn. ABC News.
3. Engelfried, N. (2018). Educational Series: Australia’s Fires Are Burning Animals to Death. Animal Petitions.
4. ETH Zurich;. (2019, February 20). The global impact of coal power. Phys Org.
5. Juma, N. (2020, May 8). These Ocean Quotes Will Inspire Beauty And Depth. Everyday Power. Everday Power.
6. NSW Government. (n.d.). Resources & Geoscience. Retrieved May 16, 2020, from NSW Government: https://www.resourcesandgeoscience.nsw.gov.au/investors/coal-innovation-nsw/research-projects/fugitive-methane-emissions-from-coal-mines
7. Slezak, M. (2018, September 18). Adani plans to draw 12.5b litres of water and there will be no environmental impact statement. ABC News.
8. Windsor, T. (2019, December 27). The Sydney Morning Herald. This drying continent can’t afford Adani’s pipeline to 12.5 billion litres of precious water.

This paper proposed to analyze whether the existing policy could be the correct way to develop sustainable development in the case of Indonesia. The current policy may or may not able driving Indonesia into sustainable development country as part of Kebijakan Ekonomi Nasional (KEN) and Rencana Umum Energi Nasional (RUEN). By looking at the fact that the increasing demand of coal production both for domestic consumption and as export commodity indirectly initiate both private firms and state owned firm to increase coal mining in order to fulfill the demand. We want to analyze whether the existing policy may protect the natural environment, as per if environmental aspects are ignored, may caused damage both for social living and environmental issues and will only create a burden for government, apart from the income for the country that are created from coal production.

Abstract

Coal is currently one of the most important sources of energy that able to generate electricity and can be used for another purpose such as producing steel and cement. As coal considered the cheapest way to generate electricity, it is labelled as the most polluting source of energy due to high proportion of carbon. The substitutes for coal might be natural gas, which actually more less pollutant but on the other hand has more fluctuate price in the global market. Hence, countries around the world are shifting their production and focusing on coal

Indonesia itself has taken place as the world’s largest producers and exporters of coal, overtaking the previous largest coal exporter, Australia since 2005. Indonesia produces significant amount of medium quality (between 5100 and 6100 cal/gram) and the low-quality type (below 5100 cal/gram) in which the demand are most likely coming from India and China. The current world reserve for coal may last for another 112 years (Investment, 2016). In addition to that, according to information presented by Indonesia’s Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Indonesian coal reserves are estimated to last around another 83 years with current rate of production. However, the lifespan might fasten as Indonesia currently established the program of increasing another 35.000 MW in order to fulfill all the electricity that all households across Indonesia needs

Regarding global coal reserves, Indonesia currently ranks 9th, containing roughly 2.2 percent of total proven global coal reserves according to the most recent BP Statistical Review of World Energy. Around 60 percent of Indonesia’s total coal reserves consists of the cheaper lower quality (sub-bituminous) coal that contains less than 6100 cal/gram.

There are numerous smaller pockets of coal reserves on the islands of Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Papua but the three largest regions of Indonesian coal resources are:

1. South Sumatra
2. South Kalimantan
3. East Kalimantan

In the early 1990s, Indonesia had reopened the investment for coal, and in a short period of time, Indonesia has seen a major increase of coal production and its consumption, both in domestic market and overseas market. Despite all of that, the domestic consumption is not as high as the overseas consumption. Therefore, the government are actually committed to initiating to their ambitious energy program which mainly involving the consumption for coal-powered power plant. Apart from that, several big companies such as Adaro Energy, already expanded their production not only focusing on coal production but as well as other commodities due to the cheap price of coal might be unattractive for some firms.

Introduction

GDP Contribution

Compared to another source of power, coal is relatively easy and low-cost extraction, which means less expensive in establishing the infrastructure requirement. Coal is dominating the world’s power generation, taking place at 27 percent and more than 39 percent of all power plants worldwide are using coal-generated power plant due to the large amount of reserve worldwide

Indonesia contains abundant reserves in medium and low-quality coal. Also by the fact that Indonesia’s low labor wages, making coal have competitive price in international market

Indonesia’s strategic geographical position towards the giant emerging markets of China and India. Demand for low quality coal from these two countries has skyrocketed as many new coal-fired power plants have been built to supply electricity for these countries.

Main export destinations for Indonesia’s coal exports are China, India, Japan, and South Korea, and at some point, Indonesia able to export 85 percent of the production to those countries.

Despite the awareness of renewable energy has been improved from year to year, it hasn’t reduced the Indonesia’s dependency for coal production. In fact, the increasing awareness for renewable energy hasn’t made major impact worldwide, not only in Indonesia. Current government only made the change for coal production to be able to use clean coal technologies in mining operation and expected in the future the damage will not be as harmful, and Indonesia is expected to become heavily involved in that process being a major player in the coal mining sector. These clean coal technologies focus on the reduction of emissions produced by coal-fired power generation but lack sustained progress yet. Upstream activities connected to coal mining, such as the development of coalbed methane (CBM) reservoirs of which Indonesia contains great potential, has begun to receive attention recently.

In order to secure domestic supplies, Indonesia’s Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources are restricting coal producers so that there will be a certain amount of reserve that able used as domestic consumption. In addition, government impose more tax for export market. The government aims for more domestic consumption of coal as it wants coal to supply around 30 percent of the country’s energy mix by 2025:

Ambitious Plan to Expand the Power Sector

Indonesia’s demand for power has always increased from year to year that affects the consumption of resource and soon will aware that renewable energy is also important. Indonesia government has agreed upon the 35.000 MW project, which initiated in the presidency of Joko Widodo by early 2015 as a commitment to established energy dependence with renewable sources. The project are done by PT. PLN (Perusahaan Listrik Negara) which is state owned enterprise, with helps of private firms.

PLN Roadmap on 2019-2024 has agreed to establishing another 35.000 MW power plant in order to fulfill all parts of Indonesia electricity needs. While on 2019 the current production of electricity generated by Indonesia’s Power plant counted at 80,4 GW. Coal generated power plant still dominating in Indonesia on producing electricity, about 48%. The 35,000 MW programme requires $73 billion of investment in generation, transmission and distribution. Most of the projects are to be developed by IPPs, while PLN will be responsible for the construction of transmission and distribution lines (Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, 2017).

This 35,000 Megawatt figure is derived from the assumption of economic growth of 6-7% per year, an increase in electricity consumption from 800 Kw hours per capita to 1200 Kw hours per capita and an increase in electrification ratio from 80% to 96% in 2019. So it can be concluded that Indonesia requires additional electricity capacity of approximately 35,000 Megawatts in the period of 5 years to 2019 (Hidayati, 2015; Sahana, 2015).

The project is expected to be completed in 2026 and is expected to improve the progress of the economic sectors in Indonesia. However, in its implementation, this project also experienced several obstacles. The obstacle faced in the final quarter of 2016 was the provision of land, the difficulty of price negotiations between PT. PLN and IPP, procurement and supply stage constraints due to lack of enthusiasts, fairly complicated licensing, the process undertaken is not as expected, weaknesses in project management, weaknesses in cross-sectoral coordination aspects, and investor distrust. These constraints are expected to be minimized by the government and PT. PLN (Persero) as the executor of the project.

Moreover, how do Indonesians respond to the 35,000 MW project? A survey was conducted by distributing questionnaires online, which were filled by 98 respondents from various walks of life. The results of filling out the questionnaire showed that the majority of the community considered this project important to be run by the government.

Behind this opinion, the respondents realized that this project had both positive and negative impacts. The positive impact that most respondents realize is that the electricity needs of the community will be increasingly met. In addition, respondents also considered that the procurement of this project would affect the increase in community productivity, development of the industrial sector, and increase in electricity reserves in Indonesia.

In addition to the positive impacts, respondents were aware that there were negative impacts behind the project, especially impacts related to pollution and environmental damage, disruption to public health, as well as economic losses. However, respondents argued that the negative impact was not greater than the negative impact so respondents tended to agree with the procurement of the 35,000 MW project.

It can be concluded that the 35,000 MW project had positive and negative impacts and still encountered obstacles in its implementation. it is suggested that the government finalizes this project so that the positive impact to be generated will be far greater than the negative impact caused.

Damage caused by coal mining

Coal mining activity might cause damage in terms of natural environment because by mining an area means that it would change the topography structure, creating massive hole, hydrology issue, reducing in air quality and the vanished of original ecosystem. However, this can be overcome by doing plantation which actually able to generate income. Such as rubber tree. The mining activities are causing negative effect since it would harm the physical environment such as air pollution, water pollution, and sound pollution. So that the mining activities contribute significant impact for the change in environmental quality, and the people who live nearby have to pay the cost that is indirectly caused by mining activities (Pertiwi, 2011)

Environmental damage, water and health in coal mining cause a significant threat, which may be hydrologically connected to other groundwater-dependent ecosystems including farm dams, bores and rivers. Water from coal mines must be disposed and waste material is often held within the surface lease of a mine, introducing a risk of contamination of human food sources (Castleden, 2011). Pollution of the environment may also occur through the wind carrying dust, at the location where where coal is washed and at export ports.

The real case happened in 2010, as coal seam gas operations in Queensland were postponed at two sites because groundwater had become contaminated with a potentially dangerous combination of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene (BTEX). Similar contamination occurred after an underground coal gasification trial near Kingaroy.10 The Queensland government has recently banned BTEX chemicals from coal-bed fracturing fluids. Social and mental health impacts coal mining can change the lifestyle and character of a community. Medical practitioners has stated that in coal mining areas, there are significant report in increases of asthma, stress and mental ill health, which are similar in other coal mine worldwide. As more coal mines are opened, the more the chance that many inhabitants of these regions have developed depression, anxiety and ill health.

Policy Evaluation

The implementation of environmentally friendly mining and reclamation activities can be based on the law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 4 of 2009, concerning mineral and coal mining, Government Regulation of the Republic of Indonesia Number 78 of 2010, concerning Reclamation and Post-Mining and Regulation of the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources of the Republic of Indonesia Number 7 of 2014, concerning the implementation of reclamation and post-mining in mineral and coal mining business activities. Reclamation is an effort to improve the environment and it is the obligation of coal mining companies in Indonesia, in accordance with Republic of Indonesia Law No. 4 of 2009, concerning mineral and coal mining. The implementation of reclamation is regulated in the Regulation of the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources of the Republic of Indonesia Number 7 of 2014, concerning the implementation of reclamation and post-mining in the mineral and coal mining business activities. Changes in the landscape are the main reason for the reclamation of the former coal mining land. Principles of land reclamation after coal mining include: 1) Improvement of physical, chemical and biological soil conditions through: (a). improvement of aeration conditions and level of soil density by conducting deep soil treatment; (b). providing organic fertilizer such as manure, compost, crop mulch or other organic matter mulch; (c). inorganic fertilizer application to increase the availability of nutrients such as N, P, K, and (d). Provision of ameliorant materials such as lime (CaC03), dolomite, or coal ash. 2) Control surface runoff to prevent erosion and landslides by planting cover crop legumes (LCC) that can fix N from the air, fodder grasses, and / or other terrace reinforcement plants; making water drains (SPA) reinforced with stones or planted with grass (grass water ways), starting from the top terrace to the bottom and equipped with water flowing from stone, bamboo, wood; plant ‘barrier’ plants, such as Vetiver, Phaspalum, BD grass on the lips and sloping terraces / slopes especially those that are steep to control surface runoff and erosion. 3) The first priority is planting pioneer trees for greening such as angsana, acacia mangium, sengon, lamtoro, gamal, bamboo plants, whose function is mainly to increase organic matter and protect the soil from rainwater. 4) Planting trees of economic value as a second priority such as mahogany, bamboo, breadfruit, sungkai, cashew nuts, which are long term because if planted in the short term are likely to fail because the death rate is quite large (Sidik and Irawan, 2014).

References

1. Liebman, D., Forster, W., Pujantoro, M., Godron, P., Tampubolon, A., Giwangkara, J., & Tumiwa,, F. (2019). A Roadmap for Indonesia’s Power Sector: How Renewable Energy Can Power Java-Bali and Sumatra [Ebook]. Jakarta: Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR).
2. Sloss, L. (2017). Environmental and other effects of mining and transport [Ebook]. London: IEA Clean Coal Centre. Retrieved from https://www.usea.org/sites/default/files/Environmental%20and%20other%20effects%20of%20mining%20and%20transport%20ccc281.pdf
3. Arinaldo, D., & Adiatma, J. (2019). Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. (2017). Indonesia’s Electricity Demand and the Coal Sector:Export or meet domestic demand? [Ebook] (1st ed.). Jakarta: Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR). Retrieved from https://www.climate-transparency.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/SPM-english-lowres.pdf
4. Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. (2017). Indonesia’s Electricity Demand and the Coal Sector:Export or meet domestic demand?
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6. Castleden, W., Shearman, D., Crisp, G., & Finch, P. (2011). The mining and burning of coal: effects on health and the environment. Medical Journal Of Australia, 195(6), 333-335. DOI: 10.5694/mja11.10169.
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9. ETEnergyworld.com. (2019). Is market overestimating Indonesia’s ability to continue thermal coal supply for export market? – Opinion by Vinay Prakash | ET EnergyWorld. [online] Available at: https://energy.economictimes.indiatimes.com/energy-speak/is-market-overestimating-indonesia-s-ability-to-continue-thermal-coal-supply-for-export-market/3815

What is coal mining?

Coal mining is the procedure of removing coal from the ground. Coal is a necessity for human beings nowadays, generating most of our energy. It is a popular item on top of the market with high demand. Coal is a non-renewable resource meaning after we have used it all up it will take millions of years to replenish it, so governments are trying to find alternatives, so we do not run out. Mining takes place in many countries such as China, Australia, United States of America and Russia as all these countries have a mass of coal, exporting to other countries and making money. There are two different mining methods to extract coal, the first one is surface mining and the second one is underground. Surface mining is when the first layer of soil and vegetation are removed to get to the hidden coal, while as underground mining involves digging deep underground to find coal.

Causes of coal mining:

The causes of mining in Australia and China are almost identical. We mine coal for many reasons, the main reason is for energy (electricity) as we need the energy for everyday life.

Australia: Australia is the world’s leading coal exporter. Australia mines coal for the energy it provides us, but along with the mining industry it has also brought in advantages such jobs, wealth and asset for the country. It is a known fact that coal mining makes 85% of the energy we use today. Coal mining is also crucial for the world as it manufactures steel and cement so without coal, we wouldn’t be able to make houses, pools etc. Electricity made from the coal also allows people to turn on and off their lights, charge our phones and make your house colder or hotter. Hence meaning mining in Australia is useful.

China: China is the world’s biggest coal producer, meaning by mining they are gaining most importantly electricity, money, jobs and assets just like Australia. Due to China having the world’s most population the Chinese government has to cater for all the energy/electricity required, this is why the government has opened up many coal mines, using energy for themselves but also exporting to other countries. It is known that coal provides China with 69% of its primary energy and 80% of its electricity meaning that mining in China is beneficial.

Biophysical process Australia:

The effects of mining are the same wherever it’s being done, however certain problems are more prominent in certain regions.

In Australia, several issues occur related to water such as, water not being able support an ecosystem anymore due to it being polluted. Furthermore, due to increased acidity in water, organisms cannot perform their normal functions, hence subsequently dying. Increased acidity also prevents the water from being drinkable. After the mining process, soil erosion also occurs, causing streams to become dirty disturbing fish, drinking water and water services such as swimming etc.

Biophysical process China:

In China, the main detrimental effect of mining is air and atmosphere pollution. Particulate matter, emissions and gases are all the effect of coal mining in relation to air pollution. Some of the gases include carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide. All three gases are toxic, leading to air pollution if coal is burned in large amounts. They lead to diseases such as respiratory problems, lung cancer and pneumoconiosis. Furthermore, carbon, dust and coal particles mixed together throughout the mining process discharged from coal transport all lead to respiratory problems such as asthma and chronic bronchitis .

Short term effects:

Australia: There are many short-term effects in Australia from coal mining. A short- term effect in Australia is fish dying as a result of the mountaintop removal which makes streams and rivers filled with rock and dust killing hundreds of fish. Another short- term effect is increased water acidity. When an area is affected by increased acidity of water, the result is that damages to fish and corals would occur. Coral bleaching is a serious short-term effect of coal mining in Australia as in the Great Barrier Reef it is a fact that one third of the reef is already dead from coral bleaching.

China: There are several short-term effects in China from coal mining that will gradually worsen over the years due to the government not taking action. A short-term effect in China is air pollution, a detrimental factor in China. It is a fact that 1.1 million deaths in 2015 related to air pollution, showing how bad pollution is in China. Air pollution is caused from mining by the inadequate burning methods, leading to toxins being released in the air. Another short-term effect is the destruction of habitats of wildlife for mining. This happens when miners take up a mass amount of space, cutting trees down and digging the soil meaning taking away homes from the wildlife. Furthermore, large amounts of waste not being disposed properly is another short-term effect. This procedure affects not only water but also land and air causing pollution of water and air, further worsening what could be taken care of properly.

Long term effects:

Australia: All the short-term effects of coal mining in Australia lead up to the long-term effects. In Australia loss of biodiversity is a long-term effect as fish are getting higher chances of extinction due to acid mine drainage and the mountaintop removal process, as these contribute to adding to the risks of the deaths the fish might have meaning in the long run extinction might occur. Fish will also lose their homes due to coral bleaching, further leading to extinction. Another long-term effect is global warming. Global warming happens from the burning of coal which leads to green-house emissions of carbon dioxide and methane. Furthermore, the most long- term effect is that coal is non-renewable, so once we use it all up, we will have to wait millions of years for it to replenish.

China: All the short-term effects of coal mining in China lead up to the long-term effects. In China global warming is a major problem. Like in Australia, it happens from the burning of coal. The change of climate in China is associated to global warming, as China is the world’s greatest greenhouse emitter making Another major long-term effect is chronic illnesses in China. Due to the amounts of air pollution and the releasing of toxic chemicals chronic illness will rise as already people are dying. Some illnesses include respiratory diseases, pneumoconiosis and lung cancer. These chronic diseases all cause death at a faster rate. Loss of biodiversity is another prominent long-term effect as there is illegal mining practices. The miners do not really care about the habitats of the wildlife, cutting trees down and digging the soil, thereby taking away homes from the wildlife and causing loss of habitat and therefore biodiversity.

Spatial distribution:

China: In this picture it is clear to see that China is mined in a greater proportion to Australia. In China coal is mined to a great proportion as many of these places are mined to an extremely high level according to this map. China is being mined more than Australia as China has the most amount of coal in the world hence meaning it would have to be mined to a greater extent to further receive all the resources they need to provide for the world.

Australia: In this picture it is recognisable that Australia is mined in a smaller proportion compared to China. According to the Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources, only 0.02% of Australian land is being used for the purpose of mining (and that is for all types of mining, so coal mining is actually even less than that). This is why Australia is being less mined compared to China.

Management responses Australia:

There are many management responses in both Australia and China however, some regulations may not be as useful as others:

In Australia many management responses have taken action such as enacted legislation to control mining. All these laws help with environmental sustainability. The Australian Minerals Industry Code for Environmental Management was a crucial industry strategy. The ambition of the code was to teach mining companies how to be safe, and how to better the environmental performance and public accountability and were not aimed to arrange principles. The effectiveness of this was decent as now miners know how to be safe and have learnt how to better the environment etc. Furthermore, regulations and legislation relating to mining, such as the Coal Acquisition Act 1981 which outlines rightful and lawful ways for coal to be mined in Australia. This legislation is effective as it has helped Australia mine in a legal way compared to China were all of its areas don’t mine legally. Additionally, another project that was implemented last year was the New South Wales Environment Protection Authority’s Dust Stop Program. This program was created to impose better control on dust. The aim was to accomplish an 80 per cent dust decrease of dust by this month. This program was effective as it helped decrease dust further lowering health problems, and climate change.

Management responses China:

In China minimal legislation and regulations exist, because it is not in the best economic interests to control mining in China. Although there are some regulations, they are obviously not enough, because many people continue to get sick as a result from mining. A law in China is The Mineral Resources Law. This law is for the whole of China guiding the extraction of mines in China and the listing of mining rights. This law has been adjusted in 1996 and 2009 and hasn’t been very effective as people still mine illegally in China. Another law was the air law aimed to prevent and control air pollution from coal burning, cars etc. This law commenced in 1987 and was last implemented on 2016. The laws try to confine all toxins in the air including carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide. This law is terribly ineffective as China is one of the worlds most polluted countries, displaying this law hasn’t worked.

Contribution of individuals and government:

There are many ways in which individuals and governments can contribute to stop mining effects:

Australia: In Australia the first contribution would be to Stop Adani a coal mine in preparation which threatens the Greater Barrier Reef, for this a campaign #stopadani would be made and put online for further viewers to help and prevent this hazardous situation from occurring. Another contribution to make is to take building more mine, as if we keep doing so, we will just be increasing the risk of pollution, loss of biodiversity etc. Additionally, another contribution that could be made is that government and non- profit organisations (young people) start a social media on mining to educate people who don’t know of this issue making people want to take action and stop this issue.

China:

In China a contribution that would be useful is to close down many of the mines to reduce air pollution and enact more legislation and stricter regulations in regard to mine operation and impose stricter penalties and very heavy fines for people who do not follow these rules. Another contribution is for the United Nation to take action against China as it is a global issue affecting everyone. Finally, a last contribution is for non- profit organisations (young people) start a social media on mining to educate them making people want to take action and stop this issue.

All these actions will help with the sustainability of the environment further lowering short term and long-term effects.