The Social Dimensions of Mineral Exploration

SEG Discovery ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 16-28
Author(s):  
Sarah Mackenzie ◽  
Jo-Anne Everingham ◽  
Pam Bourke

Editor’s note: The Geology and Mining series, edited by Dan Wood and Jeffrey Hedenquist, is designed to introduce early-career professionals and students to a variety of topics in mineral exploration, development, and mining, in order to provide insight into the many ways in which geoscientists contribute to the mineral industry. Abstract Geoscientists are often the first point of contact a local community has with a company conducting mineral exploration. The behavior of the geoscientists and the interest they take in understanding the local community and stakeholders will have ramifications well beyond their direct exploration activities. This article highlights some of the positive and negative impacts exploration can have for local communities (in part drawing on interviews with experienced geoscientists and others involved in exploration). The article explores the increasing complexity of deposits in terms of environmental, economic, social, and political parameters and the increasing scrutiny by local stakeholders and the international community. We argue that, although geoscientists are not social performance specialists, they still need the awareness, tools, and capabilities to understand and manage the social aspects of their exploration activities commensurate with the stage and resourcing of the project. We propose three interrelated aspects of social performance that can be applied during mineral exploration: meaningful and positive engagement, acquiring and documenting a social knowledge base, and strategic investment in the community. Two case studies provide cautionary examples of failure to do so and two case studies highlight how, through careful engagement and strategic collaboration, mutually beneficial and positive relationships can be built from early exploration.

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tiago Ribeiro ◽  
Abel Correia ◽  
Rui Biscaia

PurposeDespite the recognition that citizens' perceptions of mega sport events' social impact is critical for the sustainable development of these events and host cities, most previous studies have not taken into consideration how these perceptions may change over time. This study examines citizens' social impact perceptions of the 2016 Rio Olympic Games before and after the event.Design/methodology/approachData were collected amongst local residents of Rio de Janeiro pre- and post-event (n = 256). A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) analysed the psychometric properties of the proposed social impact constructs. Subsequently, a multigroup analysis and latent mean comparisons were conducted to test social impact perceptions pre- and post-event.FindingsThe multigroup CFA showed factorial stability of the social impact model in both periods, while the latent mean comparisons revealed significant differences in the dimensions of social experiences, city image and community pride enhancement, public infrastructures and social conflicts. Results indicated that the perception of positive impacts tends to increase, while perceived negative impacts decrease from pre- to post-event.Social implicationsThe social effects of hosting sport mega events result in a short-term change in attitudes towards the local community, leading to a better comprehension on how communities perceive the event's impact on their lives.Originality/valueIn a highly complex mega event such as the Olympic Games, any change may influence residents' perceptions. The findings of this study demonstrate the importance of residents for determining support or opposition in hosting the event, allowing a better understanding of the exchange effects.


1973 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 158-171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vivian Nutton

The last decade has witnessed a widespread resurgence of interest in Galen of Pergamum that is without parallel since the early seventeenth century. New studies of Galen's concepts of psychology and medicine have examined afresh his position in the development of scientific thought, and historians have begun to realize the wealth of material for the social history of the Antonine Age that he provides. But, despite the earlier labours of Ilberg and Bardong to restore a chronological order to the many tracts that flowed readily from his pen, many of the events of his life still lack the precise dates that would enable even more valuable information to be extracted, especially upon the careers of his friends.


SEG Discovery ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 22-31
Author(s):  
Andre van As

Editor’s note: The Geology and Mining series, edited by Dan Wood and Jeffrey Hedenquist, is designed to introduce early-career professionals and students to a variety of topics in mineral exploration, development, and mining, in order to provide insight into the many ways in which geoscientists contribute to the mineral industry. Abstract The rock mass response to mining is governed by the rock mass characteristics and the mining-induced changes that drive its behavior. To be able to study and accurately predict the response of the rock mass to mining, it is imperative that both the orebody and the enclosing country rocks are well characterized through the collection and analysis of large quantities of good-quality, representative geologic, structural, geotechnical, and hydrogeological data. These are the fundamental constituents of a good geotechnical model whose reliability improves as the mining project matures and moves from exploration and study phases, passes the decision to develop, and proceeds into construction and then operations. Each phase provides greater exposure to the rock mass, reduces uncertainty, and increases reliability in the geotechnical model and in an understanding of the rock mass behavior. The quest of the geotechnical engineer is to understand the rock mass behavior and is no different from that of the geologist who defines the mineral resource, and it warrants (at the very least) the same level of rigor in data collection, analysis, and reporting. Just as the geologist continues to improve the orebody model through grade reconciliation during mining, so the geotechnical engineer must continually revisit and calibrate the geotechnical model during the operational phase of mining through geotechnical monitoring. The increasing demand by investors and stakeholders that the performance of a mine does not deviate from plan due to unforeseen geotechnical surprises warrants a significant shift in the level of geotechnical data collection, analyses, and rock mass monitoring through all stages of study and operations. This demand warrants supporting budgets and assurance processes that are commensurate with the complexity and extent of the geotechnical uncertainties.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natasha P. Jailal

The 2015 Pan American and Parapan American Games will be hosted in Toronto. The Athletes’ Village is being constructed in the West Don Lands and post Games will be transformed into a mixed-use community. Due to the scale of the project and brief duration of the Games, the creation of this new neighbourhood in Toronto is a sizeable undertaking but has the potential to accommodate Toronto’s anticipated growth and serve to connect the Waterfront from east to west. The central issue for this paper is identifying the legacy aspects of the Athletes’ Village and how stakeholders can work to mitigate any potential negative impacts identified. The investigation will focus on the social, environmental and economic impacts. Recommendations for stakeholders are presented based on the research approach which included interviews, a review of literature as well as case studies of previous sporting events in Winnipeg, Vancouver, Calgary, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Guadalajara, Mexico.


SEG Discovery ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 23-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Orpen ◽  
David Orpen

Editor’s note: The Geology and Mining series, edited by Dan Wood and Jeffrey Hedenquist, is designed to introduce early-career professionals and students to a variety of topics in mineral exploration, development, and mining, in order to provide insight into the many ways in which geoscientists contribute to the mineral industry. Abstract The diamond drill is the most productive tool available for the earth scientist to explore and map the subsurface. However, the quality of the information obtained for analysis and modeling depends on how well the processes involved are understood so as to eliminate systematic and human error and effectively minimize the variables causing random error. This overview of the quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) procedures required to manage these errors starts with the planning phase of a drilling program and goes through drill rig setup, borehole depth measurement, core recovery measurement, core depth registration, core orientation, borehole survey, and borehole path reconstruction. An outline follows of the methods used in the logging process to accurately depth reference the data recorded from both core and bore, as well as to ensure that the angles measured for structures are verified and correctly rotated to derive their in situ dip and dip direction or plunge and trend. To conclude, the provisions required for effective audits of the drilling and logging QA/QC processes are discussed: testing for inconsistencies, certifying that standards have been achieved, reporting on weaknesses, and making recommendations for improved performance.


SEG Discovery ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 1-22
Author(s):  
Dan Wood, AO ◽  
Jeffrey Hedenquist

Editor’s note: The Geology and Mining series, edited by Dan Wood and Jeffrey Hedenquist, is designed to introduce early-career professionals and students to a variety of topics in mineral exploration, development, and mining, in order to provide insight into the many ways in which geoscientists contribute to the mineral industry. Abstract For economic geologists, mineral exploration has a specific objective: the discovery of mineral concentrations that can be recovered economically to provide resources essential for society. This was achieved consistently until the first decade of the current century, but exploration since then has been wealth destructive. This outcome is a major issue for the mining industry unless reversed. We believe the technologies presently used to discover ore deposits will be as useful in making future discoveries as they were previously. However, we argue that a new approach is required in how exploration is conducted and in how these and emerging technologies are applied. The required changes in approach include improved business models for conducting exploration and acceptance that fewer deposits are likely to be discovered near the surface. We argue that discovery of deeper deposits will be facilitated if exploration teams (1) seek to identify subtle evidence of mineralized rock recognizable within 500 m of the surface, (2) conduct follow-up investigations with a clear understanding of the volumetric dimensions of the discovery target, and (3) drill boldly as a critical exploration tool. We propose that improving the way geoscientists think when exploring—being more predictive—is the immediate key to increasing the number of discoveries.


2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 211-230 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jackie A. Ziegler ◽  
Gonzalo Araujo ◽  
Jessica Labaja ◽  
Christine Legaspi ◽  
Sally Snow ◽  
...  

Perceived crowding is an important measure in assessing the social impacts of tourism activities. The goal of this study was to determine if the method used to measure perceived crowding in the marine environment (numerical vs. visual approach, boat vs. swimmer crowding) affects the crowding outcome and to apply the concept to a high-density marine wildlife tourism site, viewing whale sharks in Oslob, Philippines. The influence of various variables, including specialization, gender, nationality, swimmer behaviors, and proximity, was also tested to see if they affected crowding levels. Results indicate that a visual approach is more accurate in measuring reported encounters and encounter norms, and that boat and swimmer crowding are not interchangeable. Boat crowding is a serious problem in Oslob (95.6% crowded). Specialization, nationality, and swimmer behaviors and proximity all affected perceived crowding. Individuals who reported feeling crowded were more likely to perceive negative impacts of tourism activities on the local community, whale sharks, and wider environment. They also showed higher levels of support for management interventions to limit the number of people and boats at the site and to better regulate or ban whale shark provisioning activities. This study provides important insights regarding how to measure perceived crowding in the marine environment and management implications for a mass tourism wildlife site experiencing overcrowding.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 70-79
Author(s):  
Janak Puri

Tourism is considered as one of the largest and fastest developing sectors of the world. Its high growth and development rates bring considerable volumes of foreign currency inflows, infrastructure development, employment generation, regional development, economic multiplier effects and introduction between host and guest peoples experience actively affect various sectors of society, which can positively affected to the social and economic development. However the tourism also generates a number of other negative socio-economic impacts on local communities. This study considers the mainly socio-economic impacts on local community trough tourism development in Kasara. The study is focused to identify the social and economic impacts on local community and their perception towards the tourism. The study is adapted the qualitative methodology and the data is generated through primary and secondary source, personal interviews, discussions and social interaction. The study identified that community has developed positive attitudes about the tourism development and the community is accepted tourism as a major income source through active and passive participations. As usually the tourism has generated both positive and negative impacts in the society. However, the negative impacts are at a minimum level when compare with the positive impacts. The social tradition, culture and human behaviour exchange between host guest interactions. The tourism revitalizes the culture and sometime declines the culture of the host country. The tourism helps to develop the livelihood of the people and can earn money from the different business and cultural activities. Community empowerment and their capacity building are highly important in this context.


2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Stephen R. Christ

This dissertation analyzes the social worlds of the Mexican restaurant industry. First, the topic of organizational constructions and presentations of authenticity is investigated. In examining the relation between discourses of business (profit) and aesthetics (authenticity) in Mexican restaurant contexts in which authenticity is a major theme, this study demonstrates the processes of negotiation and policing which form the "authentic" experience for patrons of restaurants. The second major theme explored in this dissertation is the subjective dimension of authenticity among Mexican immigrant men working in the Mexican restaurant industry. Traditionally marked as women's work, restaurant food preparation and serving is almost exclusively a male dominated niche of the labor force. Based on data gathered in the field, this project introduces the concept of gender posturing and homosocial behaviors as a means of developing a pragmatic understanding of the many ways male restaurant workers define, perform, negotiate, and police the boundaries of acceptable forms of masculinity. The third major theme of this project blends discussions of organizational and subjective dimensions of authenticity as it explores the basis and negative impacts of stereotypes on ethnic restaurant profitability. An examination of the institutional bias ethnic restaurant owners and workers perceive and experience during regular county health inspections demonstrates the influence of public discourse on the marking of ethnic restaurants.


Author(s):  
Laura Brenes-Peralta ◽  
María Fernanda Jiménez-Morales ◽  
Rooel Campos-Rodríguez ◽  
Matteo Vittuari

Abstract Purpose Several frameworks coincide in the importance of addressing social impacts to ensure sustainability. However, the agri-food sector, regarded as key in sustainable production, still neglects to identify potential social impacts when applying life cycle approaches. This work contributes to understanding the social performance of three agricultural products from a Latin American and Caribbean developing country as Costa Rica while recognising the challenges of Social-Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA) application in this context. Methods S-LCA represents a powerful technique to evaluate the potential social impacts of a product. Three case studies were analysed through S-LCA, using the subcategory assessment method (SAM) to characterise the social impacts and detect hotspots in the production of green coffee, raw milk and leafy vegetables. Primary data was collected through questionnaires to relevant informants and observations. In addition to secondary information, these data and information were used to assess eight impact subcategories for the farmer and worker stakeholder groups and nine subcategories for the local community. Results and discussion The main results suggest that the Costa Rican institutional and market frameworks provide an enabling environment for a generally positive social performance in the studied cases. The assessed stakeholders can fulfil basic needs through access to inputs and services and achieve fair-trading conditions. Child labour, forced labour and evidence of environmental or health risks for the surrounding communities were absent. Important efforts to address the delocalisation, migration and child labour were observed, suggesting the potential development of social handprints in further studies. However, the farm production phase, related to farmers and workers, entails hotspots regarding social security and women’s empowerment. Moreover, farmers appear as the most vulnerable group because of their overall social performance. Conclusions S-LCA helped identify relevant areas of intervention in the context of these particular case studies; however, further research and capacity building are recommended to tackle the detected challenges, both in the agri-food chains and in the use of S-LCA. Furthermore, these findings can aid in future decision and policy-making to improve and safeguard the positive social performance observed in the studied products.


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