IGCSE Environmental Management Revision Guide
CONTENTS
Lithosphere
Part 1. Structure and Process in the Lithosphere
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The structure of the Earth
Evidence for the internal structure of the Earth
Types of Rock
The Rock Cycle
Erosion, Weathering and Deposition
Sedimentary, Igneous and Metamorphic Rock Formations
Fossil Fuel Formation
Mineral Formation
Part 2. Plate Tectonics, Earthquakes and Volcanoes
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Plate Tectonics
Types of Tectonic Activity
Constructive Boundaries and Mantle Convection Currents
Destructive Boundaries
Summary table of different kinds of plate boundaries
Causes and Types of Earthquakes
Causes and Types of Vulcanicity
The Richter Scale
The Volcanic Explosivity Index
Economic Aspects of Living in Earthquake and Volcano Zones
The impacts of earthquakes and volcanoes on people
Strategies for managing the impacts of earthquakes and
volcanoes
Part 3: Harvesting the Lithosphere’s Resources
Searching for Lithosphere Resources
Extracting Lithosphere Resources
Extracting Oil and Gas Resources
Use of lithosphere resources in industry
The location of mining areas and related industries
A selection of minerals, their ores and uses.
Exploitation of Mineral Reserves
Exploitation of Oil
The Future for Oil
Geological Accessibility
Extreme Climates
Implications of global trade patterns in lithosphere resources
The impact of mineral exploitation on the environment and
human health
o The global economic consequences of over-exploitation and
depletion of lithosphere resources
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The Lithosphere
Part 1: Structure and Processes in the Lithosphere
The Structure of the Earth
Crust
A thin layer, 60km
thick in some
continental crusts
and down to 5km
thick at the oceanic
crust.
Made of Silicon,
Aluminuium and
Magnesium.
Core
Very high temperature
over 3,000OC and high
pressure, the inner
core is solid and
probably made of iron
and nickel. The centre
is 6,900km below the
earth’s surface.
Mantle
Most (80%) of the
lithosphere is found here,
made from molten magma
at temperatures over
1,000OC. It extends down
to 2,900km deep.
Evidence for the internal structure of the Earth
In the 1960’s there was a project to drill down into the mantle through the
earth’s crust. This project was abandoned although now experimental drilling
has gone over 14km into continental crust this has not entered the mantle.
Therefore anything deeper than this has not been directly observed, except
that some of the rocks from the upper mantle which have risen to the surface.
The rest of the Earth’s structure comes from looking at the patterns in
earthquake shockwaves, along with predictions made from rock density and
patterns of magnetism over the whole planet.
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Types of Rock
Sedimentary – These rocks are formed from fragments or particles, not
crystals. They are formed from the deposition of hard minerals (for example
quartz.) when the agents of erosion drop them e.g. sandstone or chalk.
Igneous – These rocks form from cooling magma underground, or lava at
the earth’s surface. They are crystalline rocks that are normally hard e.g.
granite or basalt.
Metamorphic – These rocks are formed when sudden changes in
temperature happen, for example when molten magma “cooks” a
sedimentary rock. They are also formed under high pressure conditions.
Examples include marble or schist.
The Rock Cycle
The rocks are linked in a very slow moving cycle called the rock cycle,
connected by tectonic forces and the processes of weathering, erosion and
deposition. The rock cycle takes millions of years to transform one type of
rock to another. It is possible for rocks to skip steps in the cycle, for example
a sedimentary rock can be weathered, eroded and deposited to become a
new sedimentary rock.
Sedimentary
Rocks
Erosion and
weathering
and deposition
Heating,
pressure and
recrysalistation
Igneous
Rocks
Metamorphic
Rocks
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Melting and
Solidification
Of Magma
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Erosion, Weathering and Deposition
Weathering is the breaking down of rocks without movement; mainly due to
the forces of weather. Chemical weathering is the dissolving of rocks by
natural acidity in rain; physical weathering is the breaking up of rocks due to
changes in temperature and biotic weathering is the break down or rocks by
living organisms.
Erosion is the movement of the products of weathering, and may involve
breaking the rock further. The main agents of erosion are rivers and streams,
wind, glaciers and gravity.
Deposition occurs when the agents of erosion drop the particles as they no
longer have the energy to move them. The compression of these particles
over time will result in a sedimentary rock forming.
Sedimentary, Igneous and Metamorphic Rock Formations
Sedimentary rocks are normally found in layers that can be folded, faulted,
heated or pressurized. Igneous rocks are formed when molten magma rises
up through lines of weakness in the rocks and cools at or under the surface
forming crystals. Metamorphic rocks form where the sedimentary rocks come
into contact with the igneous rocks.
This type of igneous intrusion is later weathered and eroded to form granite
upland areas such as Dartmoor in the UK or islands such as Koh Samui,
Thailand. Mineral resources are often found in these metamorphic regions.
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Fossil Fuel Formation
Fossil fuels are made from the fossilized remains of plants or animals from
millions of years ago. Different types of fossil fuel are formed from different
environments of formation. These rocks are fuels as the organic material in
the organisms did not decompose fully due to low oxygen conditions in the
environment. They are therefore rich in organic hydrocarbons that contain
stored energy originating in plant photosynthesis.
Petroleum oil is formed under the sea from dead bodies of small plankton;
natural gas and tar are formed along with these deposits.
Coal is formed in a swampy environment from the bodies of trees and
swamp animals.
Mineral Formation
Ore minerals are rocks that have valuable minerals deposited in them. These
minerals are often formed from the metamorphosis around an underground
igneous intrusion. In other words rock is cooked by the bubbling of molten
magma through the rocks. Many crystals are likely to form and a number of
valuable metals may be found. For example the mining of tin is often
associated with large granite intrusions such as are found in SW England and
Phuket. Both areas supported large tin mining industries in the past, until the
tin ran out or became economically not worth mining. Other examples of ore
minerals include iron ores (e.g. magnetite or haematite).
Part 2: Plate Tectonics, Earthquakes and Volcanoes
Plate Tectonics
It was suggested by a number of people that the earth’s crust is not stable
since at least the 16th century when it was noticed that the continents of
South America and Africa interlocked. This theory of moving land was known
as called “Continental Drift Theory” and not accepted by many Geographers
until the 1960’s when the full theory of plate tectonics was introduced. The
basis of plate tectonics is to understand that the world is made of a number
of crustal plates, rather like the surface of an egg cracked slowly by rolling it
over a table. These plates are moving due to the convection cycles of magma
in the mantle below, that are rising under mid ocean ridges and falling at
subduction zones.
Types of tectonic activity
Folding occurs where pressure on rocks in the crust causes them to bend.
Faulting occurs where the pressure on rocks in the crust causes them to
break and move apart.
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Constructive Boundaries and Mantle Convection Currents
New crustal plate is formed at the ridge pushing away in
both directions to form new oceanic plate
Convection currents of molten magma rise up in the mantle under the
ridge. Ridges are found in the centre of all major oceans around 5km under
the sea. Low grade volcanic activity and earthquakes are associated with
them.
Destructive boundaries
Subduction Zones
Oceanic Plate
pushes towards the
continental plate
Continental Plate
pushes towards
Oceanic Plate
Continental Crust
Mantle Rocks
Mountain building occurs here, where the rocks in the crust are pushed
up higher by plate collisions to form high mountain ranges. When oceanic
crust is subducted under oceanic crust then Island Arcs form from
volcanic activity e.g. Sumatra and Java, Indonesia.
NOTE – In the top diagram the convection current is rising and the bottom
diagram it is falling.
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Continental Collision Zone
Mountains
Pushed
Upwards
Continental
Crust
Pushes this
way
Continental
Crust
Pushes this
way
Mountain
“roots” pushed
down
Mantle Rocks
The Himalayan Mountain range is a good example of this kind of boundary.
Continental Crust collisions produce the highest mountains and the thickest locations
for Crustal Rock. Here the crust can reach 70km deep. These boundaries are marked
by intense earthquake activity and mountain building, but no volcanic activity.
Transform Fault Boundary
Crust
Mantle Rocks
In transform fault boundaries the plates do not move directly together, but slide
past each other. This kind of boundary generates a lot of earthquakes. The
most famous example is the San Andreas Fault in California, USA.
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Summary table of different
Type of
Examples
Boundary
Mid-Ocean
Constructive Ridges e.g.
or Divergent MidBoundaries
Atlantic
Ridge
Destructive
or
Convergent
Boundaries
kinds of plate boundaries
Activity
Characteristics
Low grade
earthquake and
volcanic activity
under the ocean,
only on land in a
few locations
such as Iceland.
Forms new plate
and may new
land or whole
islands e.g.
Surtsey Island in
Iceland
Subduction Associated with
Zones –
mountain
e.g. Rocky building, Island
Mountains, Arc formation and
North
high grade
America.
earthquakes and
explosive volcanic
eruptions
including the
December 2004
earthquake and
tsunami, and Mt.
St. Helens in 1984
Continental Form large
Collisions
mountain ranges
and the deepest
continental crusts
such as the
Himalayas.
No volcanic
activity.
Conservative Lateral or
Boundaries
transform
boundaries
A great deal of
plate movement
is found causing
frequent
earthquakes. For
example the San
Andreas Fault.
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These plate boundaries are
the only places where new
crust is made, that is why
they are called constructive.
They are found deep down in
the middle of the major
oceans and always push
away from the boundary on
both sides (diverge). It is
thought they form where
mantle convection currents
rise.
These plate margins have a
higher density oceanic plate
pushed under lighter
continental crusts or oceanic
crust. One plate is subducted
or pushed under the other.
They create many
spectacular geographic
features such as oceanic
trenches (the deepest
oceans) and high mountains
such as the Rocky Mountains
in the USA.
Continental crusts are the
same density, so one plate
does not go under the other.
Instead the plates crumple,
pushing both up into the
atmosphere and down in to
the mantle. The Himalayas
were formed by the Indian
plate crashing into the
Eurasian plate and is still
rising today.
The plates do not directly
collide, but push past each
other.
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Causes and Types of Earthquakes
Earthquakes are the sudden repeated movements of the earth’s crust
caused by shock waves from plate boundaries. Three forms of shock wave
occur;
1. Primary “P” Push/Pull waves (fastest)
2. Secondary “S” or Shake waves
3. Long “L” Surface waves (slowest)
The slow moving surface waves causing the most damage. Earthquakes are
measured in intensity using the Richter scale. Earthquakes are extremely
common tectonic events, occurring every day under the ocean. Even large
earthquakes of over 7 on the Richter scale occur every month.
Plates move continuously at plate boundaries against a lot of friction. When
the friction is too great the plate stops moving, this is called a seismic gap.
Seismic gaps lead to a build up of pressure and when this is released an
earthquake occurs. The type of plate boundary influences the type of
earthquake found there, with transform boundaries generating the largest
quakes.
Causes and Types of Vulcanicity
Vulcanicity is the activity associated with the movement of molten magma
from the earth’s mantle forming volcanoes and other features such as
“magma bubbles” under the ground. Volcanoes are formed when magma is
forces up through either continental or oceanic crusts. Magma may rise due
to differences in density or the movement of crustal plates, particularly in
subduction zones.
Volcanic eruptions can be measured on the volcanic explosivity scale. Mid
ocean ridges produce low grade volcanoes and subduction zones high grade,
the other kinds of boundaries do not produce volcanoes. Volcanoes can
produce earthquakes.
Volcanic eruptions are far less frequent than earthquakes – compare the
threat frequencies on the two diagrams.
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Examples
Richter Scale 1
Global Frequency
Of Threat
2
3
4
Every
Minute
Richter 1 -2 - Detected
by Seismographs
6.4
India1993
6.9
San
Francisco
1989
7.2
Kobe,
Japan
1995
7.8
Mexico
City
1985
8.2
San
Francisco
1906
5
6
7
8
Every
Hour
Every
Week
Every
Month
Every
Year
Richter 5-6 Distinct shaking,
Structural Damage occurs,
poorly built houses collapse.
Richter 3-4 Faint Tremors
Felt – Little Physical Damage
The Richter Scale
Richter 7-8 Major
Earthquake with violent
shaking destroying buildings
and infrastructure.
8.8
Lisbon,
Portugal
1755
9.1
Sumatra,
Indonesia
2004
9.5
Chile,
1960
9
Richter 9 Rare and
extreme earthquakes,
surface cracks open up.
Massive faults and folds
occur.
This is a measure of the size of earthquake shock waves; it is not linear, but logarithmic. This means that each level is approximately ten
times greater in force than the previous point on the scale.
A large nuclear weapon explodes equivalent to 32 million tons of TNT, this would create shock waves of around 7 on the scale.
Around 32 billion tons of TNT would be needed to generate an equivalent shock to level 9.
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Examples
Regular,
slow
flow
“Pa Hoe
Hoe”
Lavas in
Iceland
VEI
0
1
2
1997
Plymouth,
Montserrat
Caribbean
1994
Rabaul
Papua
New
Guinea
1980
Mt. St.
Helens,
USA
1991
Mt.
Pinatabu,
Phillipines.
Global
cooling
effects on
climate
recorded
1815
Tambora
Sumawa,
Indonesia
50 km3 of
ash blown
into the
atmosphere
73,500
Years ago
Toba,
Sumatra
3000km3 of
crust blown
in to the
atmosphere
3
4
5
6
7
8
Every
Year
Every
Ten
years
Every 100
years
Every
Every
1,000 years 50,000
years
Global Frequency
Of Threat
VEI 0-1 Low and frequent
eruptions that are typical of
mid-ocean ridges or hot spots
VEI 2-3 small to moderate
eruptions that can cause
extensive local damage
The Volcanic Explosivity Index
VEI 4-5 Large to major
eruptions that cause
regional effects, local
devastation
VEI 8 Super-eruptions
Rare and regionally
devastating eruptions with
massive global climatic
effects -“volcanic winter”
VEI 6-7 Massive eruptions causing
regional devastation, may last for a
long time. Global climate influenced
causing crop failures.
This scale was developed in the 1980’s to allow comparisons of eruptions. It is also a logarithmic scale like the Richter. The VEI scale
combines measures of how much material is sent up into the atmosphere, along with how fast the volcano erupts.
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Economic Aspects of Living in Earthquake and Volcano Zones
There are some benefits to life near the plate boundaries. Geothermal energy
supplies may be exploited to heat water or generate electricity. This happens
in Iceland and Japan. Volcanic eruptions produce very fertile soils and these
attract farmers to the slopes of the volcanoes – such as rice farmers in
Sumatra and Java, Indonesia. On the other hand economic damage caused
by these events is huge. Despite these limitations some of the most
developed cities in the world are found in areas that are at great risk from
Earthquake damage e.g. San Franciso or Tokyo. Here a considerable amount
of extra money is put into the design and construction of buildings to make
them more resistant to damage.
The impacts of earthquakes and volcanoes on people
Damage to property and loss of life from earthquakes is far greater than that
of volcanoes. This is due to the fact that they occur more frequently and
cause destruction in a wider area. It is often said that earthquakes don’t kill
people, buildings kill people. In many earthquakes it is the collapse of
buildings on top of people that kills, not the earthquake itself. Fires breaking
out due to the earthquake can also lead to massive increases in the death toll.
Additional deaths are caused by broken power lines and the panic responses
of crowds of people. Tsunamis caused by earthquakes can take the death toll
up massively spreading the disaster over much wider areas.
Volcanic eruptions may cause deaths due to the eruption of lava, ash or
volcanic bombs. But the pyroclastic flows - “glowing clouds” of dust and ash,
with temperatures exceeding 300 to 800 degrees OC, that move at speeds of
over 100 km per hour from the eruption sites cause many more deaths.
Volcanic mudflows are also one of the biggest killers from eruption sites;
mixtures of water and ash can move at tremendous speeds down the side of
a volcano. Tsunamis may be triggered by volcanic eruptions or earthquakes.
The effects of an eruption or earthquake may be greater in the aftermath if
relief efforts are not able to help. Crops may have been destroyed and a lack
of food can lead to malnutrition and famine. Water related diseases can also
spread quickly in disaster struck areas due to poor sanitation and a lack of
clean water.
The economic damage to a disaster area may continue for some time after
the event itself. Industries may be directly damaged and take some time for
development to return. Workers and markets may relocate to other area, such
as the tourist trade in Phuket following the 2004 tsunami.
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Comparison of Some of the Worst Disasters.
Date
Place
Event
1976
Tangshan,
China
Gansu,
China
Tokyo
Yokohama,
Japan
Xining
China
Chile and
Pacific
Ocean
Sumatra
and Indian
Ocean
Armero,
Columbia
7.8
Earthquake
8.6
Earthquake
8.3
Earthquake
1920
1923
1927
1960
2004
1985
1883
1815
1902
Krakatoa,
Indoesia
Tambora,
Indonesia
Martinique,
Caribbean
No of
Casualties
242,000650,000
200,000
Main Cause of Death
143,000
Fire
Collapse of Buildings
Landslides
7.9
Earthquake
9.5
Earthquake
200,000
6,00010,000
Tsunami
9.1
Earthquake
155,000250,000
Tsunami
Nevado del
Ruiz
Volcano
Erupts
Volcanic
Eruption
Volcanic
Eruption
Mt. Pelee
Eruption
25,000
Mudslides
36,000
Tsunami
92,000
Famine (80,000)
Glowing Clouds (12,000)
Glowing Clouds
35,000
Strategies for managing the impacts of earthquakes and volcanoes
Many earthquakes occur away from human settlements and cause no
damage, but as population increases there are more people found living in
earthquake zones. Volcanoes may actually attract people due to the good
farming found on the slopes. Although it is not possible to actually predict
either event it is clear that monitoring can help give some warning of volcanic
eruption and indicate the likely location of earthquakes along a plate
boundary. In some situations such as Mexico City fast response to a quake
event can actually give an opportunity to evacuate to shelters (Mexico City is
a long way from the fault lines). In the case of tsunamis it is also possible to
give accurate early warnings if monitoring buoys are in position.
Planning for the design of settlements in earthquake zones can save many
lives, through the zoning of land uses. If hazardous industrial areas or
refineries are positioned near to domestic areas then the risk of dangerous
fires or explosion is likely to threaten more lives. Key routes into areas for
evacuation and relief efforts can be designed so that they are unlikely to be
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blocked by damage to structures such as bridge. The design of buildings can
make considerable difference. Tall buildings are designed to swing with the
earthquake, otherwise they break.
Part 3: Harvesting the Lithosphere’s Resources
Searching for Lithosphere Resources
A variety of techniques are used to determine the location of lithosphere
resources. Geologists map the strata of rocks found at the surface and try to
determine the positions of these rocks under the ground, this is known as
stratigraphy. They will also examine and predict the quality and purity of
any resources to try and determine if it will be economic to extract them.
If geologists predict valuable resources are likely to be present then seismic
surveys are carried out to work out underground structures by using
controlled explosions or other impacts and listening to patterns in the
reflected sound using a series of geophones.
Surveys of magnetic fields or gravity can also help determine under
ground structures indicated by variations in the density of rocks. These
geophysical techniques are also carried out at sea, particularly in the search
for oil (see below for exploratory drilling).
Extracting Lithosphere Resources
Solid resources found at the surface or nearly at the surface can be mined
directly by digging into the ground. This technique is called open-cast
mining; coal, copper, bauxite and china clay are sometimes extracted this
way.
Open-cast mining can be carried out on a massive scale, creating huge
holes in the ground, such as the Morenci copper mine in Arizona, USA that
is 3km across and 500m deep.
Deeper resources are mined by using underground mining. Drift mining is
carried out where the useful beds of rock are found on the side of a hill or
mountain and the miners simply cut in from the edge of the hill. Deep mines
may involve accessing the mineral resources deep under the ground using
lifts down long shafts.
The deepest mine shaft changes each year as the mines get deeper, but it is
normally one of the South African Gold Mines. Some of these currently go
deeper than 3.5km into the crust e.g. the East Rand mine at 3,585 meters
deep in 2003.
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Extracting Oil and Gas Resources
Oil is a liquid mineral that is formed in source rocks (see earlier), but may
later move through spaces of certain sedimentary rocks called reservoir
rocks. Natural gas may be found with oil, in the rocks above it, or on its own.
Gas is piped directly from the gas fields, which may be under the sea.
It is rare to find any evidence of oil at the surface so geophysical techniques
(see above) along with exploration drilling are carried out, the sequence of
rocks that come through the drill (the mud log) giving further evidence for the
presence of oil.
At sea the exploration drilling takes place on jack-up platforms in depths of
water less than 50m, or in deeper water semi-submersible rigs. Very deep
drilling takes place from specialized drilling ships.
If oil is found during exploration then massive production oil rigs are put
into place to extract the oil. The oil extracted is crude oil which varies in
quality and impurities.
This crude oil is taken into oil refineries and it is used to produce a large
range of different grades of oil for different purposes from rocket fuel to
diesel. Additionally there is a large range of oil by-products that are made in
refineries such as some plastics.
Use of lithosphere resources in industry
Most industrial processes are still dependent on fossil fuel energy supplies of
either coal or oil. Additionally most machinery is dependent on iron or steel
and bulk resources such as clay (for cement), sand and gravel are used for
the buildings and other constructions using concrete.
Limestone (calcium carbonate) has a large variety of uses including the
purification or iron during smelting, neutralizing acids from fossil fuel
burning in power stations, making lime (calcium oxide) for agriculture,
glass making or baking with clay to make cement.
Uranium and plutonium are found in mineral ores, these are important
fuels for nuclear power stations (see energy section in Biosphere II)
The location of mining areas and related industries
Lithosphere resources occur where geological processes form them, so they
are found only in some restricted locations. Mineral ores for example are
found mainly around areas where tectonic activity has or is taking place near
plate boundaries. Other kinds of rocks are associated with the conditions
found in the centre of plates. Kimberlite, that yields diamonds, is found only
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where rocks from deep in the mantle arise through volcanic plugs. So
resources are mined where they are found, with one exception that is natural
gas which is piped from under the ocean to the land.
Mining takes place where the resource is, but where processing and related
industry take place will depend on the type of resource. Crude oil is easy to
transport by tanker and refineries may be located a long way from the fields.
Coal on the other hand is an extremely bulky fuel and can yield relatively
small amounts of energy for its weight. Coal power stations are generally built
closer to coal fields due to this. Transport by water – rivers, canals or sea –
can be a good deal cheaper so coal may be moved longer distances like this.
Uranium yields the equivalent of around 50,000 tonnes of coal and so can
be moved large distances to make energy, which is why the UK can import
it from Australia.
Some industries that require specific resources or large amounts of cheap
energy will still have to locate near to those resources. Modern “footloose”
industries are rarely dependant on such specifics, but the industrial revolution
in the United Kingdom was centered on regions that had abundant coal and
limestone for steel manufacture. Mines or manufacturing industries that
require large labour forces may need to move close to large population
centres or encourage the labour to move closer to the mines and factories.
A selection of minerals, their ores and uses.
Mineral Resource
Mineral Ore
Use of the Ore
Iron
Haematite
To make steel for construction work or
used directly.
Tin
Aluminium
Cassiterite
Bauxite
Used for food cans etc.
Bottle tops, cans for food an drinks,
aeroplane parts, cooking foil etc.
Copper
Chalcopyrite
Good electrical conductor.
Lead
Galena
Used to make batteries
Zinc
Sphalerite
Used to coat iron to protect it from rust.
Diamonds
Kimberlite
Cutting tools and valuable gemstones
Uranium
Pitchblende
Used to produce in nuclear reactions for
power generation and weapons.
Exploitation of Mineral Reserves
Minerals resources are not always mined until they are completely exhausted.
It may become economically unviable to take out the materials if the price
changes. For example production in the coalfields of the UK fell as a result of
a reduction in demand and a political decision to switch to oil. Improved
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technologies and changes in prices may combine to allow resources to be
mined in the future that are not at present.
Exploitation of Oil
Oil has been the most important of all mineral resources during the 20th
century. The discovery of oil fields peaked in the 1960’s and it has been
harder to discover new oil over the last 50 years, although the techniques for
survey and extraction have improved with technological development.
The amount of oil discovered in the 20th century can be estimated at around
1,800 billion barrels as shown by the area below the dashed line in the graph.
The amount consumed during the same period can be estimated in the same
way as around 1,115 billion barrels. Over 90% of the oil discovered has been
found in large fields of a minimum 100 million barrels of oil or gas equivalent
The Future for Oil
The demand for oil is increasing at a rate faster than population growth rate,
with massive increases coming from the development of car markets in the
Asian region. This increase demand will continue to push the prices higher in
the future, particularly as supply cannot increase indefinitely. although it is
unlikely to physically years. However the rising price is going to make it
economically inaccessible, particularly for LECD’s, in the near future. It is
thought by many working in the industry that peak production of oil is likely
to happen in the near future.
Changes in Accessibility with Market Price
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Oil not being extracted today may be recoverable in some locations in the
future, although it is inaccessible at the current market price Mostly oil fields
are not completely drained, even older fields. Higher prices will allow more
money for investment in enhanced recovery techniques. Lower grade
reserves such as oil tars may also be exploited and oil fields that are closed
now may be reopened.
Extreme Climates influence extraction
Future oil supplies are likely to be exploited increasingly in more extreme
environments such as in the Alaskan oil fields of North America. The extreme
polar climate here will add further costs to the extraction and these will be
passed on to the consumer. There are conflicts of interest with
conservationists working to protect these environments in both the Arctic and
the Antarctic regions.
Implications of global trade patterns in lithosphere resources
The global trade in these resources is of great significance to the economic
development of countries, creating a situation where all the world’s
economies are interdependent on each other. A developed country cannot
supply all of its needs from within its own boundaries. The global markets are
also of military and strategical significance, for example the need for oil to
power armed forces and uranium or plutonium to produce nuclear weapons.
The impact of mineral exploitation on the environment and human health
In some LEDC’s the cheapness of human labour is exploited to bring valuable
minerals to the surface, particularly gemstones such as diamonds or valuable
metals like silver. In the silver mines of Cerro Rico, Potosi, Bolivia children as
young as ten spend up to 12 hours a day mining for silver. Respiratory
diseases, such as bronchitis, bring down the life expectancies of many
miners from inhaling the particles of rock dust in the air underground.
Rock falls may cause more immediate damage to health, death or loss of
limbs. In very deep mines the conditions may be very hazardous.
Tremendous temperatures and pressures exist at this depth and rock
bursts from the side of the tunnels occur, accounting for at least some of
the 250 deaths a year in South African mines.
Up on the surface of the mines tunneling may lead to landslides; these can
be devastating for the surrounding villages if the mines are not dug safely.
The processing of rocks to remove ore minerals can cause further problems to
the people living in the area including noise, water and air pollution.
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Water pollution from mines can be a major environmental problem;
mines flooding after they are abandoned can lead to toxic compounds such
as cyanide or heavy metals flooding out of the mines. Overflow water
from abandoned mines that reaches rivers or lakes can kill large quantities
of fish.
The global economic consequences of over-exploitation and depletion of
lithosphere resources
Mining can not be a sustainable activity in principle, as the resource is nonrenewable on a human time scale. However some resources are so
abundant in the lithosphere that they are not going to run out for a very long
time. Clearly oil is going to run out in the near future and this will lead to far
ranging changes to the way that we supply and use energy in the world. Coal
has a longer life span, but in half a century will also be finished. Other mineral
resources will have more specific concerns related to the industries they
support.
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