87
The mining industry, as will be discussed throughout this chapter, can contribute
to sustainable development, in the sense that if properly managed, it can provide
long-term opportunities for economic growth and social development with
“acceptable” environmental impacts (International Council on Mining and Metals
(ICMM 2012a). In particular, mining produces minerals, metals, and energy, which
have been the central driver of development since before the industrial age (Auty
and Warhurst 1993; Trigger 2005; ICMM 2012a, b).
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide an ambitious set of targets for improving environmental sustainability, economic development, social cohesion, and human development by 2030 (United Nations 2015).
The functions of these goals are eliminating poverty, combating inequalities within
and between individual countries, building righteous societies, and combating gender inequality (Pactwa et al. 2018). The primary input in the gold extraction process
is water. Consumed water often comes from a variety of sources; the quality of these
sources is regularly the cause of controversial debate within the industry. Instilling
confidence of mining’s contribution to the responsible and sustainable use of this
water is instrumental in the development of the industry. Therefore, this paper
focuses on SDG 6 “Clean Water and Sanitation” (Drelich 2012).
This chapter will critically analyze the consumption of both renewable and nonrenewable resources while using life cycle assessment (LCA) to estimate the industry’s detrimental water impact. The methodology included in this chapter consists of
three key stages: (1) analyzing energy and mass balance of both open-pit and alluvial mining systems, (2) comparing data within the literature to the processing of
other minerals worldwide, (3) and estimating the detrimental water impact through
LCA and drawing comparisons between data found within the literature. The environmental impacts included within these steps were classified through the ReCiPe
method based on 1 kg of gold as a functional unit under the Ecoindicador 99 methodology, the Ecoinvent 3.1 database, and the Umberto NTX Universal Software.
This chapter will then present conclusions and strategies to achieve more efficient
resource consumption within the mining sector.
7.2 Literature Review
7.2.1 Description of Gold Mining System Technology
in Colombia: Alluvial Mining and Open-Pit Mining
One of the major challenges in mining often emerges in the extraction process.
Challenges differ depending on the type of deposit, namely, alluvial, philonian, or
spread deposits. Geological environments rely on various different extraction
systems. These also respond to specific local requirements in accordance with the
production and economic capacities and can then be used to limit the environmental
impacts experienced in the production process (Orche 1998).
7 SDG 6 Clean Water and Sanitation
The mining industry, as will be discussed throughout this chapter, can contribute
to sustainable development, in the sense that if properly managed, it can provide
long-term opportunities for economic growth and social development with
“acceptable” environmental impacts (International Council on Mining and Metals
(ICMM 2012a). In particular, mining produces minerals, metals, and energy, which
have been the central driver of development since before the industrial age (Auty
and Warhurst 1993; Trigger 2005; ICMM 2012a, b).
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide an ambitious set of targets for improving environmental sustainability, economic development, social cohesion, and human development by 2030 (United Nations 2015).
The functions of these goals are eliminating poverty, combating inequalities within
and between individual countries, building righteous societies, and combating gender inequality (Pactwa et al. 2018). The primary input in the gold extraction process
is water. Consumed water often comes from a variety of sources; the quality of these
sources is regularly the cause of controversial debate within the industry. Instilling
confidence of mining’s contribution to the responsible and sustainable use of this
water is instrumental in the development of the industry. Therefore, this paper
focuses on SDG 6 “Clean Water and Sanitation” (Drelich 2012).
This chapter will critically analyze the consumption of both renewable and nonrenewable resources while using life cycle assessment (LCA) to estimate the industry’s detrimental water impact. The methodology included in this chapter consists of
three key stages: (1) analyzing energy and mass balance of both open-pit and alluvial mining systems, (2) comparing data within the literature to the processing of
other minerals worldwide, (3) and estimating the detrimental water impact through
LCA and drawing comparisons between data found within the literature. The environmental impacts included within these steps were classified through the ReCiPe
method based on 1 kg of gold as a functional unit under the Ecoindicador 99 methodology, the Ecoinvent 3.1 database, and the Umberto NTX Universal Software.
This chapter will then present conclusions and strategies to achieve more efficient
resource consumption within the mining sector.
7.2 Literature Review
7.2.1 Description of Gold Mining System Technology
in Colombia: Alluvial Mining and Open-Pit Mining
One of the major challenges in mining often emerges in the extraction process.
Challenges differ depending on the type of deposit, namely, alluvial, philonian, or
spread deposits. Geological environments rely on various different extraction
systems. These also respond to specific local requirements in accordance with the
production and economic capacities and can then be used to limit the environmental
impacts experienced in the production process (Orche 1998).
7 SDG 6 Clean Water and Sanitation