Mining allows for the retrieval of buried resources like minerals, oil, and natural gas. The road construction and support facilities required for mining practices have led to a significant loss of vegetation and habitats.
Video Summary: Coal has a multitude of negative effects on the environment at every stage of its journey from the ground to the atmosphere. Extraction, processing, transportation, and its eventual use in power plants all inflict devastating harm both to local ecosystems and the global climate.
Oil extraction from tar sands in Alberta, Canada [7]
Exploration activities are usually short term but can displace wildlife for many years.
Acid mine drainage in Mexico [8]
Some mines produce toxic materials, increasing mortality rates in wildlife and causing pollution of water resources.
Video Summary: A leak at a Brazilian iron mine resulted in a massive release of toxic chemicals that decimated the river and ocean ecosystems downstream, displaced almost 700 people, and killed 11.