Mining makes an enormous contribution to the UK economy and will continue to do so long into the future. To underpin this, it is vital that we continue our tradition of producing world-class mining engineers. From a career perspective, it is reassuring, given current university tuition fees, that mining engineering graduates have exciting and well-paid employment opportunities world-wide. Despite these positives, the University of Exeter’s Camborne School of Mines (CSM) is now the UK’s only provider of Mining Engineering degrees at undergraduate level at a time when the mining industry is becoming increasingly technology-driven and reliant on a highly-skilled workforce.
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| Ben Williamson |
According to Ben Williamson, Associate Professor in Applied Mineralogy at Camborne School of Mines, this is mainly due to the negative perception of mining as ‘dirty’ and old-fashioned, and because students are not aware of its tremendous career opportunities and importance: “Without mining we would still be living in the pre-Stone Age. Just imagine life without your phone or car, or more mundane commodities such as cement or copper wires?” The industry is estimated to contribute around 45% of global GDP, either directly or via the use of mined products, and the gross value added to the UK economy of the extractive industries was around £6.5 billion in 2017. It also funds research and development in renewable energy technologies and numerous social and environmental projects.
Recycling of most metals is very far from total, such as for copper at around 50% globally, and there is still therefore a considerable requirement for primary raw materials. Of additional importance, for our transition to green and renewable energies, is that many new devices and products require huge amounts of metals for which there was previously little mining, and we therefore need new deposits. As an example, a typical wind turbine requires tonnes of the metal neodymium for high power magnets in its electric generator, which has sparked a huge increase in exploration for this metal over the last decade. Electric cars incorporate more than 3.5 times as much copper as conventional cars and a wholescale switch to their use will massively increase demand for metals such as lithium and cobalt for rechargeable batteries. The urgency for the discovery and large scale mining of raw materials is magnified in the light of an expected world population increase from the current 7.6 billion to 9.8 billion by 2050.”
Professor Williamson adds: “Most large shallow deposits of many essential commodities have already been discovered, and therefore mines will need to be deeper and for smaller deposits, which presents a number of technical and financial challenges. As such, it is crucial that we maintain a modern, efficient and environmentally and socially responsible mining industry, underpinned by a highly educated workforce. Most Mining Engineering graduates are now employed abroad, as metals and coal mining activity in the UK have all but disappeared over the last 50 years. Industrial minerals mining (mostly for aggregates) is still relatively strong. There is light at the end of the tunnel however, with the UK Department for International Trade having recently promoted Cornwall as having excellent potential for the extraction of tomorrow’s high-technology metals. Success there will hopefully build upon the high global demand for Mining Engineers, particularly for the UK’s CSM graduates, for whom the saying now goes ‘Look down any hole in the world and you will find a CSM’r!”
Far more needs to be done by the government, industry and education sector to highlight the vital role of mining in modern society, excellent career opportunities, considerable investments made by mining companies to be more environmentally and ethically responsible, and the importance of the mining sector to the UK economy.
Sources
% recycling of copper: Schipper et al. (2018). Estimating global copper demand until 2100 with regression and stock dynamics. Resources, Conservation & Recycling 132: 28–36; International Copper Association (2017)
Cu in cars: Copper Development Association Inc.
Mining % global GDP: Mining Weekly
Extractive industries gross added value UK economy: UK Gov
World population growth: UN
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Ben,
ReplyDeleteYou put the "whole" in such an effective and simple way, my compliments-- I hope Professional Societies related to earth sciences read this and get back to "nuts and bolts" of the issue.
Barry, you have raised this issue many times in different ways--please keep at it.
I read this hoping for more discussion on education within mining rather than educating non-miners.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was more actively involved in research, I often wondered about the education level of the sponsors.
As time progressed, I realised the general education level was very low. These days it is even lower.
Possible a bit rough to explain in detail some of the educational shortfalls. However I don't get too excited by comments that discuss society ignorance of the mining industry when the industry itself is fairly ignorant as well.
That is:
"Far more needs to be done by the government, industry and education sector to highlight the vital role of mining in modern society, excellent career opportunities, considerable investments made by mining companies to be more environmentally and ethically responsible, and the importance of the mining sector to the UK economy."
I could not identify who was the group was that is to be the recipient of this education, and it came across more as mining promotion to the public rather than grass-roots education to the mining industry?
Now I feel that most of the hard core mining/mineral engn professionals reached their Prime; they kept the wheels of industry moving with the then knowledge and engineering training. But now I strongly feel that in last twenty years the new entrants into research and industry did not come up with innovation of new technologies taking environment and society into consideration. We the professionals failed miserably to interact with industry to know the problems ailing the practices--society and remedial measures. Professional Societies have to take a major blame in not changing the perceptions of Society and on how to make the practices acceptable. .
ReplyDeleteYoung generation are missing a very exciting future of the profession.
My views are sure to upset some but I expressed what I felt based on my experience.
Sorry to be late on this interesting interchange. However, as a non-mining member of a family with a mining tradition, my view is that it is not an "either-or" dichotomy as portrayed by "unknown": there is a need to educate both miners and non-miners. It seems obvious that solutions to related social and environmental concerns, from poorly constructed tailings dams to global warming, must involve engineers. The time is critical therefore for the best and brightest: young people who seek green technologies to realize that this cannot be done without a continuing role for mining, but with best social and environmental practices at the forefront. With one edit therefore, I also agree with "unknown" that: "Far more needs to be done by the government, industry and education sector to highlight the vital role of mining in modern society, excellent career opportunities, considerable investments made by mining companies to be more environmentally and ethically responsible, and the importance of the mining sector to the global economy."
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