As compared to underground mining this method of mining removes soil and rock overlying the mineral deposit. The selection is based on technical and environmental aspects and surface mining is preferred to extract the minerals from the surface area.

The basic material used for construction purposes like crushed rocks, sand and gravel is obtained through this method.Īfter the discovery of certain kinds of mineral deposits in a particular area a method has to be evaluated to extract these minerals.

It is surprising to notice that 70 percent of the minerals extracted from the earth are through this process. The most important method used to extract the minerals from the earth is surface mining. The mining takes place in those areas where the growth of vegetation is very minimal or at times does not exist due to the surface conditions. It is a known fact that Mother Earth contributes largely to the wealth of the world. Then followed by the huge machines, such as dragline excavators,extract the mineral.

They 1st remove the overburden the soil and rock above the deposit. In most types of surface mining, heavy paraphernalia's such as earthmovers are utilized. Surface mines are naturally extended until either the valuable deposit is exhausted, or the cost of de-cresting larger volumes of overburden makes further mining an uneconomic option to shoulder. Where ever minerals occur deep below the earth's crust or the overburden is too thick or the mineral occurs as strands in hard rock, Underground mining methods are employed to extract the valuable mineral deposits. Surface mining is basically employed when deposits of commercially viable minerals or rock are found closer to the surface that is, where overstrain (surface material covering the valuable deposit) is relatively very less or the material of interest is structurally unsuitable for heavy handling or tunneling (as would usually be the case for sand, cinder, and gravel). It is the other way of underground mining, in which the overlying rock is left behind, and the required mineral deposits are removed through shafts or tunnels. Surface mining is a form of mining in which the soil and the rock covering the mineral deposits are removed.

Dredging mining environmental impact