Spatial Modelling of Kaolin Deposit Demonstrated on the Jimlíkov-East Deposit, Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic

The present study is focused on spatial modelling of a kaolin deposit in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic, and the methodical procedure of development, evaluation and visualization of a 3D model are described step by step. The implementation of this methodology is performed in Visual Studio 2019 with use of the Surfer and Voxler objects from Golden Software. This methodology combined with the newly developed software (Kaolin_A and Kaolin_Viz programs) allow a user to create a variant dynamic model for the same or similar types of deposits. It enables a quick update of the model when changing the input data, based on the new mining exploration or when changing the modelling parameters. The presented approach leads to a more advanced evaluation of deposits, including various estimates of reserves according to pre-specified usability conditions. The efficiency of the developed methodology and the software for the evaluation of the deposit are demonstrated on the kaolin deposit Jimlíkov-East, located near the village Jimlíkov about 5 km west of Karlovy Vary in the Czech Republic.

Natural Processes and Anthropogenic Activity in the Indus River Sedimentary Environment in Pakistan: A Critical Review

The Indus River is Asia’s longest river, having its origin in the Tibet Mountain northwest of Pakistan. Routed from northern Gilgit and flowing to the plains, the river passes through several provinces and is connected by numerous small and large tributaries. The river was formed tectonically due to the collusion of the Indian and Eurasian plates, which is referred to as the Indus suture Plains zone (ISPZ). The geological setting of the study area is mainly composed of igneous and metamorphic rocks. The river passed through a variety of climatic zones and areas, although the predominant climate is subtropic arid and sub arid to subequatorial. Locally and globally, anthropogenic activities such as building, dams, and water canals for irrigation purposes, mining exploration, and industries and factories all affected the physical and chemical behaviors of the sediments in various rivers. The main effect of human activities is the reworking of weathered soil smectite, a chemical weathering indicator that rises in the offshore record about 5000 years ago. This material indicates increased transport of stronger chemically weathered material, which may result from agriculture-induced erosion of older soil. However, we also see evidence for the incision of large rivers into the floodplain, which is also driving the reworking of this type of material, so the signal may be a combination of the two. Sediments undergo significant changes in form and size due to clashing with one another in the high-charge river.

A Hotspot of Arid Zone Subterranean Biodiversity: The Robe Valley in Western Australia

Knowledge of subterranean fauna has mostly been derived from caves and streambeds, which are relatively easily accessed. In contrast, subterranean fauna inhabiting regional groundwater aquifers or the vadose zone (between surface soil layers and the watertable) is difficult to sample. Here we provide species lists for a globally significant subterranean fauna hotspot in the Robe Valley of the Pilbara region, Western Australia. This fauna was collected from up to 50 m below ground level using mining exploration drill holes and monitoring wells. Altogether, 123 subterranean species were collected over a distance of 17 km, comprising 65 troglofauna and 58 stygofauna species. Of these, 61 species were troglobionts and 48 stygobionts. The troglofauna occurs in small voids and fissures in mesas comprised mostly of an iron ore formation, while the stygofauna occurs in the alluvium of a river floodplain. The richness of the Robe Valley is not a localized aberration, but rather reflects the richness of the arid Pilbara region. While legislation in Western Australia has recognized the importance of subterranean fauna, mining is occurring in the Robe Valley hotspot with conditions of environmental approval that are designed to ensure species persistence.

Regional Variation in Communities of Demersal Fishes and Scavengers Across the CCZ and Pacific Ocean

We synthesize and analyze data from visual transecting approaches and baited camera studies to evaluate fish and invertebrate scavenger communities across the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ), an area of intense deep-sea mining interest, and neighboring areas of the abyssal Pacific. In abyssal regions including the CCZ most of the top predators are large mobile fishes and crustaceans, and the majority of these are also opportunistic scavengers. Top predators can exert important ecosystem influences and they can be susceptible to sustained anthropogenic disturbances, necessitating their study in the CCZ mining region. In total 157 baited camera deployments from 3 mining exploration license areas, 4 APEIs (Areas of Particular Environmental Interest – one type of no mining zone) and 4 other areas in the Pacific (Hawaii, California, New Zealand and Guam) and 122 visual transects from 7 exploration license areas, 4 no mining zones, and the Peru Basin (DISCOL area) were examined. Many taxa were observed in both sampling techniques but visual transects viewed few fishes overall. Fish and scavenger communities and diversity varied across the CCZ, significantly for baited camera data with a parallel but insignificant pattern for visual transects suggesting that even for these highly mobile species, not all regions of the CCZ are equivalent and the CCZ cannot be managed as one homogenous region. Further CCZ communities were different than communities elsewhere in the abyssal Pacific. The regional variations in community composition are largely the result of varying abundances of species rather than species presence/absence given that most, but not all, of the fishes and scavengers observed have very large ranges. On a more local scale, seamounts had a significantly different scavenger community than neighboring abyssal plains and thus contribute to regional diversity. Visual transect data revealed a similar but insignificant pattern due to low sample sizes. Given the coarse spatial resolution of sampling of fish and scavenger communities in the CCZ, it is not possible to evaluate if no mining zones (APEIs) adequately represent these communities nor where, or if, any biogeographic boundaries exist in the CCZ region. It is possible to conclude that a network of APEIs that covers the spectrum of available habitats at regional and more local scales will be key to conserving fish and scavenger biodiversity.

Legal Analysis Towards Mining in North Sulawesi Post the Implementation of Law Number 3 Year 2020

The issuance of Law No. 3 of 2020 as an amendment to Law No. 4 of 2009 concerning Mineral and Coal Mining, has changed the supervisory mechanism for the implementation of mineral and coal mining in the regions. This study aimed at analyzing the legal mining exploration in the regions associated with the principle of decentralization based on regional autonomy. The method used in this study is empirical juridical, and the results obtained illustrate that the issuance of the new mineral and coal law will cause a minimum role for local governments, both provincial, district and/or city in monitoring mining in the regions, especially in terms of mining exploration. It is because the monitoring system for mining exploration becomes centralized and effects on reducing regional revenue potential.

An engraved invitation to consider human–earth relations: thinking non-dualism through the mining-based art practice of Lee Harrop

The scale and ubiquity of global industrialized mining and its proportionately negative impact on human rights and the environment is well documented. These costly externalities, taken in the context of increasing demand for mined materials in technical applications such as mobile phones and other devices seen as essential to contemporary commerce and communication, focalize a range of contentious issues and complexities. This article argues that mining, as an instance of instrumentalism in the human–earth relationship and in many human–human relations, exposes the reason/nature dualism underlying western ontological assumptions. Key features of dualism are described and implicated for their role in the oppression and exploitation of both human and non-human Others. A map drawn from critical ecological feminism outlining an escape route out of dualism is unfolded and brought together with the onto-ethico-epistemology of agential realism in an effort to discover possibilities for a new western social imaginary of non-dualism. The art of Lee Harrop featuring engraved core samples from mining exploration is deployed as a productive site for thinking through non-dualising implications arising from science and new materialisms.

Systematic Review of Machine Learning Applications in Mining: Exploration, Exploitation, and Reclamation

Recent developments in smart mining technology have enabled the production, collection, and sharing of a large amount of data in real time. Therefore, research employing machine learning (ML) that utilizes these data is being actively conducted in the mining industry. In this study, we reviewed 109 research papers, published over the past decade, that discuss ML techniques for mineral exploration, exploitation, and mine reclamation. Research trends, ML models, and evaluation methods primarily discussed in the 109 papers were systematically analyzed. The results demonstrated that ML studies have been actively conducted in the mining industry since 2018, mostly for mineral exploration. Among the ML models, support vector machine was utilized the most, followed by deep learning models. The ML models were evaluated mostly in terms of their root mean square error and coefficient of determination.