Colorado Mining Humankind has been fascinated with minerals and rocks as far back as we have existed. Minerals, which are referred to as the building blocks of rocks, are the foundation of almost every rock known to humans. Minerals are a naturally occurring, homogeneous inorganic solid substance having a definite chemical composition and characteristic crystalline structure, color, and hardness. In contrast to minerals, rocks are any solid mass of mineral, or mineral like matter, that occurs naturally as part of our planet (Lutgens & Tarbuck, 2014). Humans have used minerals and rocks for both decorative and practical purposes for thousands of years. Through the process of mining, humans extract these valuable minerals from within the …show more content…
The minerals that are mined have different characteristics that make them unique. Colorado precious metallic minerals such as Gold, Silver, and Copper have a distinctive, shiny, metallic luster. Colorado has been the leading producer of these minerals throughout history and continues to be a huge producer of these minerals today. The Colorado Geological Survey (CGS) states that Colorado is the fourth leading producer of Gold in the U.S. behind Nevada, Alaska, and Utah (p.1). Gemstones are another major industry for Colorado mining and include stones such as diamonds and aquamarines. In all, Colorado has over thirty different gemstones that are mined for their prized color, rarity, and endurance. The diamond for instance is the hardest substance on earth and ranks a ten on the Mohs scale of hardness. This means that a diamond can scratch all other minerals with a hardness of nine or less, but cannot be scratched itself. Colorado is also a leading producer of Coal, ranking eighth in the nation. Coal is an organic sedimentary rock consisting of decomposed plants. Colorado Coal is shipped all over the country to supply energy in an inexpensive …show more content…
On average, Gold, Molybdenum, and Silver produced over $1.5 Billion in sales annually and Colorado continues to add to the millions of ounces already extracted from our mines. Coal is the leading single resource mined in Colorado and generates an annual $850+ million in sales. Gypsum, sand, gravel, and other minerals that are mined in Colorado produce an additional $650+ million annually in sales. The estimated economic value of the minerals and rocks mined in Colorado is over $8 billion annually. Mining continues to be a huge industry for the state of Colorado and currently employs over 20,000 workers consisting of 6,000 miners and 14,000 mining support associates. Colorado Mining (2016) stated that miners are among the highest paid industrial workers in Colorado with an average of $88,000 annual
The Coteau Freedom Mine, a subsidiary of North American Cole Mine of NACO, provides coal to three main consumers: Antelope Valley Station, Leland Olds Station, and Dakota Gasification Company. All three consumers of the coal excavated at the Coteau Freedom Mine are part of the Basin Electric Company, which produces and distributes much of the power for the northern central states. The mine itself excavates about 15 million tons of coal per year, which is nearly 60,000 tons of coal per day. It is responsible for one half of the production of coal in North Dakota.
Coach Dan Haskins was the basketball coach of Texas Western University. When he got his position he wanted to recruit basketball players that could help Texas Western University's basketball team. As he journeyed to find basketball players, he recruited 7 black players. During that time period it was not common for black players to play in universities basketball teams, especially in Texas. The Texas Western Miners consisted of 7 black and 3 white athletes. Coach Haskins decision to recruit black basketball players affected the team to be harassed and threatened, the funding boosters threatened to pull funding from the team, and won the championships.
The Britannia Mines has played such a major role in the building blocks of British Columbia’s economic development and early history. Behind the unforgotten community that once flourished with 60,000 miners of different races and religions, lies a rich history that captures the hearts of many who pass by one of the most successful copper sites of its time. With that being said, the legend behind the discovery of affluent minerals in Britannia Mines is by a doctor who was searching for gold in the year, 1888. After many failed attempts to set up a mining industry, the Britannia Mine and Smelting Company Ltd. took interest in this discovery and developed operation systems and communities. The Britannia Mines in the 1920s became such a successful
Designed by Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley, this 18-hole championship golf course proves the perfect course for any player. Maintained to the highest of standards, the wide fairways and wavy greens prove to be easily playable, and have become a trademark at Copper Canyon. If this doesn't encourage you to play here, perhaps you will be indulged by the surrounding landscapes that prove to make Copper Canyon a truly special course. You will also find that the surrounding landscapes is not all that this golf course offers in regards to its beauty, as over 11 beautiful lakes are featured on the course itself, making an all round mesmerizing golf course.
Despite a family history of geophysicists and rock enthusiasts, I’ve never found the subject of rocks particularly fascinating. However, an exploration of Earth Science has lead me to the discovery that rocks are actually hidden gems (often literally), and that there’s more to the topic than one would think.
The General Mining Act of 1872 encourages people and companies to prospect for minerals on federally owned land. This encourages US citizens and businesses to stake a claim on the plot of land and patent the claim for about $5 per acre. (Withgott) Until recently, there was no requirement to restore the land after mining. Several mining techniques have been used over the years. From strip mining, subsurface mining to open pit, placer, and mountaintop mining.
Alaska should not allow the Pebble Partnership to build the Pebble Creek mine in Southwest Alaska. The benefits of the mine are nothing compared to what would happen to the environment if the mine were to be built. First off, the people in this region make their living off of the salmon who live in the rivers. If the mine were to be built, those rivers would become polluted and all of the salmon would die, meaning that everyone there would have to find a new way to survive. Not only would the rivers and water sources be polluted, but the environment in general. The mine would generate about ten billion tons of waste. This would then go onto pollute the air, kill many of the plants, and harm the animals in the region. While the Pebble Partnership
Throughout American history there has been many instances of European settlers invading the land of the native peoples. This holds true for the state of Colorado. It appears as if the Gold Rush acts as a catalyst for this hostile relationship. Although there are many positives Colorado experienced from the gold rush, the native people experienced the downside of this historical event.
Animal species are largely segregated by the environment for which they are suited to live in an their inability to thrive in non-similar conditions. Northern Arizona has quite an extreme climate; the high elevation, frigid temperatures and immense forestation make it a very hit or miss environment for animals to establish homes within during winter, weeding out species less suited for such a climate and allowing those more acclimated to thrive. However, During spring and summer many more species are able to thrive in the vast fields of fresh vegetation that is not found in the more southern regions.
Bituminous coal was first mined in Pennsylvania at "Coal Hill" (Mount Washington), just across the Monongahela River from the city of Pittsburgh. The coal was extracted from drift mines in the Pittsburgh coal seam, which outcrops along the hillside, and transported by canoe to the nearby military garrison. By 1830, the city of Pittsburgh consumed more than 400 tons per day of bituminous coal for domestic and light industrial use. Development of the anthracite coalfields in eastern Pennsylvania had progressed to the point where "hard coal" had captured the eastern markets. Consequently, bituminous coal production in western Pennsylvania grew principally with western population growth, expansion and development of rail and river transportation facilities to the west, and the emergence of the steel industry.
The Colorado Gold Rush is one of the Gold Rushes that does not get that many attention when it comes time to talk about our nation history. Sure they talk about the Gold Rush that happened in 1848 which was the California Gold Rush. The Colorado Gold Rush didn't happen 11 years after the gold was founded in eastern part of the Rocky Mountains in Cripple Creek. When the San Francisco Gold Rush was happening it made people wanted to come to the West for a bite of that Gold but ones people got here in Colorado people had one thing on their way which was the Rocky Mountains. There was no way around the Rocky Mountains at that time it was hard because people would have wagons with all their stuff most people would leave someone of their belongings behind so they could go through easer just reach the Gold Rush in San Francisco
The dependency on mining during the 19th and 20th centuries crippled the Upper Peninsula’s economy, causing a diaspora of migrants looking for work to head to lower Michigan, or other states. Mines began to close as ore prices heavily decreased, where Northern Michigan’s economy crumbled, towns became deserted, and the wealth the peninsula had once seen dwindled. Despite this, the Upper Peninsula’s economy has been on the rebound, as “Over the last forty years, average income per resident… has risen 71 percent, almost as fast as the national growth rate and much faster than the growth rate across Michigan. In addition the total income received by all residents together grew 65 percent in inflation adjusted terms. Jobs expanded by a third” (1). The economic sustenance from mining would only incur further economic degradation by pushing the reliance of mining onto a community still struggling from when it was taken away. Mining is still profitable for the region, and would conclude with a starting point for the Northern Michigan economies to gain income to plan greater economic outputs, where “The Eagle Mine… will pump $4 billion into Marquette County over its eight-year lifespan and employ about 300 while generating economic activity that will create 1,200 additional jobs” (2). The lifespan of a mine gives the region a timeframe of when they will expect to be forced to search for different fiscal opportunities, or give them a window of how long they have to find new generators of income to subsidize their current economic fallings. Mining reserves would be able to prolong the life of the mine, furthering the amount of time the region has to structure their economies on other sustainable means, as “unlike most goods and services, copper is an exhaustible resource” concluding that there “are therefore limits to cumulative copper production”
Wyoming accounts for a major percentage of coal mined all over the United States. Wyoming's Powder River Basin holds the eight largest coal mines of the United States. Wyoming obtains more than 90% of the state’sdomestic coal from Wyoming. The state is also good in the production of natural gas. Due to the excess usage of fuels, the people of the state are facing issues such as watery eyes, breath shortnessand bleeding noses due to the rise in the ozone levels.The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality warned the people with respiratory symptoms to avoid extended outdoor activities (Reynolds, 2013).
Since 1742, West Virginia has provided our nation and the world with the finest coal found anywhere. As of today, West Virginia’s coal miners apply useful and effective mineral removal technology that makes other countries envy their counterparts around the world. West Virginia’s exports more coal than any other state in the country. West Virginia has more longwall mining systems than any other state. This leads the nation in underground coal productions and sets the pace for the rest of the industry in recovery and environment protection. At the same time, West Virginia coal industry displays a sense of responsibility for health, safety and environmental that is incomparable anywhere in the world. Over the years, coal has
Today is the day! I get to visit the Rocky Mountains. I have never seen the Rocky Mountains. Also, I am going on their 100th anniversary. The Rocky Mountains have been there for over 300 million years. In 2015, Rocky Mountain National Park was the third most visited national park with over 4.1 million visitors. I have to get there early because it will be packed. The temperature can drop up to 20 degrees on top of the mountains, so I better bring a jacket.