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Revision as of 14:26, 16 September 2021 by 75.112.93.34 (talk)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Mining in the United States has been active since the beginning of colonial times, but became a major industry in the 19th century with a number of new mineral discoveries causing a series of mining rushes. In 2015, the value of coal, metals, and industrial minerals mined in the United States was US $109.6 billion. 158,000 workers were directly employed by the mining industry.
The mining industry has a number of impacts on communities, individuals and the environment. Mine safety incidents have been important parts of American occupational safety and health history. Mining has a number of environmental impacts. In the United States, issues like mountaintop removal, and acid mine drainage have widespread impacts on all parts of the environment. As of January 2020. the EPA lists 142 mines in the Superfund program.
In 2019, the country was the 4th world producer of gold; 5th largest world producer of copper; 5th worldwide producer of platinum; 10th worldwide producer of silver; 2nd largest world producer of rhenium; 2nd largest world producer of sulfur; 3rd largest world producer of phosphate; 3rd largest world producer of molybdenum; 4th largest world producer of lead; 4th largest world producer of zinc; 5th worldwide producer of vanadium; 9th largest world producer of iron ore; 9th largest world producer of potash; 12th largest world producer of cobalt; 13th largest world producer of titanium; world's largest producer of gypsum; 2nd largest world producer of kyanite; 2nd largest world producer of limestone; in addition to being the 2nd largest world producer of salt. It was the world's 10th largest producer of uranium in 2018.
History
See also:
- Carolina Gold Rush, Cabarrus County, North Carolina, US (1799)
- Georgia Gold Rush, Georgia, US (1828)
- California Gold Rush, California (1848–1855)
- Pikes Peak Gold Rush, Pikes Peak, Colorado (1859)
- Holcomb Valley Gold Rush, California (1860)
- Black Hills Gold Rush, Black Hills of South Dakota and Wyoming (1874–1878)
- Mount Baker Gold Rush, Whatcom County, Washington, United States (1897–1920s)
- Nome Gold Rush, Nome, Alaska (1899–1909)
- Fairbanks Gold Rush, Fairbanks, Alaska (1902–1905)
Mining by commodity
Top Commodities mined in the US, 2019
| Rank | Commodity | Value, US$ billion |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coal | 25.1 |
| 2 | Crushed rock | 18.7 |
| 3 | Cement | 12.5 |
| 4 | Gold | 9.0 |
| 5 | Construction sand and gravel | 9.0 |
| 6 | Copper | 7.9 |
| 7 | Industrial sand and gravel | 5.7 |
| 8 | Iron ore | 5.4 |
| Source: US Geological Survey, Mineral Commodities Summaries, 2020. | ||
Mining by mineral
- Bauxite mining in the United States
- Coal mining in the United States
- Copper mining in the United States
- Gold mining in the United States
- Iron mining in the United States
- Molybdenum mining in the United States
- Phosphate mining in the United States
- Silver mining in the United States
- Uranium mining in the United States
- Zinc mining in the United States
Mining by state
Main page: Category:Mining in the United States by state- Category:Mining in Alaska
- Category:Mining in Arizona
- Category:Mining in California
- Category:Mining in Colorado
- Category:Mining in Michigan
- Category:Mining in Minnesota
- Category:Mining in Nevada
- Category:Mining in Pennsylvania
- Category:Mining in West Virginia
Mining accidents
From 1880 to 1910, mine accidents claimed thousands of fatalities, with more than 3,000 in 1907 alone. Where annual mining deaths had numbered more than 1,000 a year during the early part of the 20th century, they decreased to an average of about 500 during the late 1950s, and to 93 during the 1990s. In addition to deaths, many thousands more are injured (an average of 21,351 injuries per year between 1991 and 1999), but overall there has been a downward trend of deaths and injuries.
The Monongah Mining Disaster was the worst mining accident of American history; 362 workers were killed in an underground explosion on December 6, 1907 in Monongah, West Virginia. The U.S. Bureau of Mines was created in 1910 to investigate accidents, advise industry, conduct production and safety research, and teach courses in accident prevention, first aid, and mine rescue. The Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act
- US Geological Survey, Commodity Summaries, 2016.
- US EPA, OLEM (2015-05-27). "Abandoned Mine Lands: Site Information". US EPA. Retrieved 2020-05-06.
- USGS Gold Production Statistics
- USGS Copper Production Statistics
- USGS Platinum Production Statistics
- USGS Silver Production Statistics
- USGS Rhenium Production Statistics
- USGS Sulfur Production Statistics
- USGS Phosphate Production Statistics
- USGS Molybdenum Production Statistics
- USGS Lead Production Statistics
- USGS Zinc Production Statistics
- USGS Vanadinum Production Statistics
- USGS Iron Ore Production Statistics
- USGS Potash Production Statistics
- USGS Cobalt Production Statistics
- USGS Titanium Production Statistics
- USGS Gypsum Production Statistics
- USGS Kyanite Production Statistics
- USGS Lime Production Statistics
- USGS Salt Production Statistics
- World Uranium Mining
- Mineral Commodity Summaries 2020 (PDF). Reston, Virginia: US Geological Survey. 31 January 2020. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
- Minerals Yearbook, Volume 3. Washington DC: US Bureau of Mines. 1995. p. 7. ISBN 978-1345966411. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
- Historical Data on Mine Disasters in the United States Archived 2016-02-10 at the Wayback Machine U.S. Department of Labor