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Environmental Impacts of Mining: Erosion &
Sedimentation
Erosion
and sedimentation
present another environmental issue for mine sites. When material
is disturbed in significant quantities, as it is in the mining process,
large quantities of sediment are transported by water erosion. The
sediment eventually drops out of solution and sedimentation occurs
at some point downstream from the erosive source. The degree of
erosion and sedimentation depends on: the degree to which the surface
has been disturbed, the prevalence of vegetative cover, the type
of soil, the slope length, and the degree of the slope.
Erosion and sedimentation affect surface water and wetlands more
than any other media. Erosion can adversely affect soil organisms,
vegetation, and revegetation efforts because it results in the movement
of soil, including topsoil and nutrients, from one location to another.
Problem | Compliance
| Health & Safety | Sampling
| Analytical | Data
Quality
Site Assessment | Prediction
| Construction | GIS
| Monitoring & Assessment
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