Nevada is becoming a major producer of lithium, thanks to topography, climate, and geologic serendipity.
mining
Posted inEditors' Vox
Soil Salinization: A Rising Threat to Ecosystems and Global Food Security
As soil salinization intensifies, it poses serious threats to ecosystems, soil health, global food security and socio-economic stability.
Posted inNews
Here’s Why Resolution Copper Wants to Mine Oak Flat
Southeastern Arizona’s “Copper Triangle” is a hot spot for high-grade deposits, thanks to ancient magmatic activity.
Posted inEditors' Vox
Toward a More Sustainable Future for the Rare Earths Industry
A new book explores how more sustainable methods are being applied to the recovery, processing, and purification of rare earths used in everyday technologies.
Posted inThe Landslide Blog
The evolution of slope failure in a large open pit coal mine
The Landslide Blog is written by Dave Petley, who is widely recognized as a world leader in the study and management of landslides. I recently came across an interesting paper in the Bulletin of Engineering Geology and Environment (Hu et al. 2024) that explores the prediction of the time to failure of large slopes in […]
Posted inNews
Earthquakes May Lace Quartz Veins with Gold
Seismic activity may kick off chemical reactions that seed nuggets of gold.
Posted inNews
Iron-Rich Volcanoes Hold Hidden Rare Earth Element Reserves
Experiments show how concentrations of rare earth elements, critical to the green energy transition, might be hiding in plain sight in iron-rich deposits around the world.
Posted inThe Landslide Blog
A Planet Labs satellite image of the failure of the mine waste storage facility at Lanjigarh in India
The Landslide Blog is written by Dave Petley, who is widely recognized as a world leader in the study and management of landslides. On 15 September 2024, a mine waste storage facility at Lanjigarh in Kalahandi district of Odisha in India failed, releasing mud and water onto surrounding farmland. According to news reports, the facility […]
Posted inResearch Spotlights
The Unexpected Role of Magnetic Microbes in Deep-Sea Mining
A new study highlights the co-occurrence of magnetic bacteria and polymetallic nodules and may offer insights into how the mineral-rich nodules form on the ocean floor.
Posted inOpinions
Concerns over Lithium, Water, and Climate in Earth’s Two Highest Deserts
Brine mining to meet resource demands amid renewable energy transitions is affecting water resources in South America and China. Hydrologists can help understand how and join the search for solutions.