Energy use from mining

It’s not solar powered

The energy used in mining does not come from wind or solar power. It comes from burning fossil fuels. The industry is among the largest sources of CO2 emissions.

Mining powers the consumer society

All corners of the consumer society relies on mining to extract the stuff we use to make our products.

• The average electronic device today contains more than 60 minerals mined from Earth.
• Petroleum is used to make over 6000 different consumer items
• A newborn will need a lifetime supply of: 360 kilos of lead, 1600 kilos of aluminum, 15,000 kilos of iron, and 560,000 kilos of stone, sand, gravel and cement.

Mining is dirty business

Mining has been labelled the number one toxic polluter in the world and cause severe damage to ecosystems and humans. To illustrate, the average miner in the tin mines of Potosí in Bolivia lives 25 years less than the average Bolivian person.

It’s BIG business

The three most produced commodities in the world all come from mining or drilling:

• Crude oil
• Coal
• Iron ore

Mining uses some of the heaviest machinery on the planet. The largest of these machines can weigh up to 13,000 tonnes (3,700 African elephants) and are able to remove 160 cubic meters of soil in one single go (more than the world's annual gold production).