B etween 1900 and 2010, the global volume of natural resources used in buildings and transport infrastructure increased 23-fold (1). Sand and gravel are the largest portion of these primary material inputs (79% or 28.6 gigatons per year in 2010) and are the most extracted group of materials worldwide, exceeding fossil fuels and biomass (2). In most regions, sand is a common-pool resource, i.e.,...

The formation of environmentally toxic acidic waste from mining activities is a world-wide problem. Neutralization of this waste can be accomplished by physicochemical and/or biological means. In this short-term study, synthetic acid mine drainage was added to sandfilled mesocosms containing silica-dominated (quartz) sand. Glucose was added as a carbon source for microbial iron and/or sulphate ...

This study seeks to address the problems of major geo-environmental hazards caused by high-intensive coal mining in China’s western eco-environment frangible area including strong mining pressure, surface subsidence, soil and water loss, and land desertification. Using the high-intensive mining at the Xiao-jihan Coal Mine, this paper investigates the compaction characteristics of aeolian sand-b...

The functions of the crawler for mining and driving are all remotely controlled from the control computers on the ship. Various sensors allow comprehensive monitoring of the performance of the crawler. The crawler computer is based on PC/104 modules in connection with a standard industrial field bus system (Interbus) for data acquisition and control. The software used in the sand mining system ...

The article considers the component composition of soil cover in areas mining sand and sand-gravel material Leningrad region. sites under study are anthropogenically transformed that have a direct indirect impact on natural cover. Direct should include burial soils dumps, complete removal profile as result quarrying changes relief. process rock can lead to change parent rock. Indirect influence...

—Endangered Interior Least Terns ( Sterna antillarum athalassos ) and threatened Piping Plovers ( Charadrius melodus ) nest in Nebraska at gravel mines where they are vulnerable to disturbance and nest loss. Conflicts occur when their nesting and protected status delay mining activities. The possibility of shifting nesting from active to inactive mining areas by using a deterrent (mylar flaggin...