Copper

Many years ago the strip mining of coal was outlawed because it was damaging to the landscape. Copper is strip mined where often times the first step is to clear the forest. Then explosives are used to blow up the earth before the digging begins. The ore is crushed and mixed with chemicals like sulfuric acid to change the copper into copper sulfide. Sulfides are processed by extraction and purification using chemicals and heat. At the smelter the ore is heated to 2,300 degrees F and converted into a molten liquid. Electric current is then used to plate out the copper. The proposed copper mine in Arizona will use 18% of the Colorado River's water supply which is enough for one million homes. This is in an area where there is a water shortage. Sulfide ore copper mining released dangerous chemicals like mercury, arsenic, lead along with air pollution. Clean water surrounding a copper mine can quickly become polluted, appearing a reddish color from copper acid. Contaminate water can severely impact groundwater, fish, wildlife and farmland. The current usage of copper is 2 million tons per year and the need in thirty years will be 1.4 billion tons or a 700 fold increase. How will 700 new copper mines affect the environment. This is only one of the many metals that will be needed build the windmills, solar panels and EV's to meet the new green deal. The need includes zinc, cobalt, iridium, nickel along with a dozen rare earth metals. Rare earth metals are more damaging to the environment than than copper. When all this is accomplished the disposal of all of these elements poses another hazard.