Editing Mining (section)

{{Short description|Extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth}}
{{redirect|Underground mining|other uses|Underground soft-rock mining|and|Underground hard-rock mining}}
{{Other uses}}

{{Merge from|Stone industry|discuss=Talk:Mining#Proposed merge of Stone industry into Mining|date=March 2025}}
[[File:Sulphur Mining at Kawah Ijen 3.jpg|upright=1.5|thumb|alt=Person stabbing a yellow mineral block|Mining of [[sulfur]] from a [[Deposition (geology)|deposit]] at the edge of [[Ijen]]'s crater lake, Indonesia]]

'''Mining''' is the [[Resource extraction|extraction]] of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the [[Earth]]. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through [[agriculture|agricultural processes]], or feasibly created [[Chemical synthesis|artificially]] in a [[laboratory]] or factory. [[Ore]]s recovered by mining include [[Metal#Extraction|metals]], [[coal]], [[oil shale]], [[gemstone]]s, [[limestone]], [[chalk mining|chalk]], [[dimension stone]], [[rock salt]], [[potash]], [[gravel]], and [[clay]]. The ore must be a rock or [[mineral]] that contains valuable constituent, can be extracted or mined and sold for profit.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Definition of ORE |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ore |access-date=2023-02-10 |website=Merriam-Webster |language=en |archive-date=2023-02-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230210194323/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ore |url-status=live }}</ref> Mining in a wider sense includes extraction of any [[non-renewable resource]] such as [[petroleum]], [[natural gas]], or even [[fossil water|water]].

Modern mining processes involve [[prospecting]] for ore bodies, analysis of the profit potential of a proposed mine, extraction of the desired materials, and final [[mine reclamation|reclamation]] or restoration of the land after the mine is closed.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/deremetallica50agri|title=De re metallica|last1=Agricola|first1=Georg|last2=Hoover|first2=Herbert|date=1950|publisher=New York, Dover Publications|others=MBLWHOI Library}}</ref> Mining materials are often obtained from ore bodies, [[lode]]s, [[vein (geology)|veins]], [[coal mining|seams]], [[quartz reef mining|reefs]], or [[placer deposit]]s. The exploitation of these deposits for [[raw material]]s is dependent on investment, labor, energy, refining, and transportation cost.

Mining operations can create a negative environmental impact, both during the mining activity and after the mine has closed. Hence, most of the world's nations have passed regulations to decrease the impact; however, the outsized role of mining in generating business for often rural, remote or economically depressed communities means that governments often fail to fully enforce such regulations. [[Mine safety|Work safety]] has long been a concern as well, and where enforced, modern practices have significantly improved safety in mines. Unregulated, poorly regulated or [[illegal mining]], especially in [[developing economies]], frequently contributes to local [[human rights]] violations and [[environmental conflict]]s. Mining can also perpetuate political instability through [[Conflict resource|resource conflicts]].