Mining, Society, and a Sustainable World

ISBN-13: 9783642011023 / Angielski / Twarda / 2009 / 506 str.

Jeremy Richards

Opis

I sit on a man s back, choking him and making him carry me, and yet assure myself and others that I am very sorry for him and wish to ease his lot by all possible means except by getting off his back. Leo Tolstoy - Writings on Civil Disobe- ence and Non-Violence (1886). In today s world where sustainable development has become a critical security concept for the well-being of the environment and society, the man Tolstoy depicts might well be interchangeable for either the planet in terms of its carrying-capacity or its bene?ciary, society. While it is arguable that mining is neither inherently sustainable nor unsusta- able (O Faircheallaigh, this volume), exploration, production, and consumption of non-renewable resources over time makes the industry ultimately unsustainable if it results in negative socio-economic impact (Waye et al., this volume). This inva- ably leads to de?nitions of sustainability in terms of the ?nancial bene?ts that can accrue from transforming natural capital into human capital, theoretically creating intergenerational bene?ts (ibid.). Such a de?nition of sustainability is inherently utilitarian, assuming the English political philosopher Jeremy Bentham s sugg- tion that human nature avoids pain for the pursuit of pleasure, and that legislators should therefore base decisions on the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people (Bentham 1996)."

Recenzje

From the reviews:

"Edited by Richards, a noted earth sciences authority, and written by worldwide topical experts, this treasure trove of information on the social impact of mining is ... considered a timely addition to most academic library collections. ... In view of the intended broad readership of students ... each chapter has appropriate text, illustrations, tables, and references. A detailed index supports the book's fundamental reference value. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower- and upper-division undergraduates as well as all general readers concerned about the environment." (W. C. Peters, Choice, Vol. 47 (10), June, 2010)

"Mining, Society and a Sustainable World has a wealth of ... information on today's mineral resources. ... the volume belongs in the library of any university granting degrees in geology or environmental studies. Any economic geologists whose interests extend beyond the particular deposit on which they are currently earning their living will find the book to be of interest." (Raymond M. Coveney Jr., Economic Geology, Vol. 105, 2010)

Spis treści

The Role of Mining in Developed and Developing Economies.- The Resource Curse: A Modern Myth?.- Extractive Economies, Growth, and the Poor.- The Challenge of Mineral Wealth: Using Resource Endowments to Foster Sustainable Development.- The Role of Mining in the Economies of Developing Countries: Time for a New Approach.- A Hierarchy of Natural Resources with Respect to Sustainable Development—A Basis for a Natural Resources Efficiency Indicator.- Mining and Sustainable Development.- Sustainable Energy and Mineral Resource Extraction and Consumption—Can a Viable Biosphere Be Preserved?.- Sustainable Development and Mining—An Exploratory Examination of the Roles of Government and Industry.- Natural Resource-Based Sustainable Development Using a Cluster Approach.- Mining and the Environment.- Improving Environmental Performance in the Minerals Supply Chain Using a Life-Cycle Approach: The Role of Fuel and Lubricant Suppliers in Enabling Sustainable Development.- Global Trends in Mine Reclamation and Closure Regulation.- Environmental Liability in the Mining Sector: Prospects for Sustainable Development in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.- Mining and Societal Issues.- Applications of Stakeholder Engagement and Eco-Efficiency as Enablers of Corporate Responsibility in the Australian Mining and Minerals Processing Industry.- Socio-Economic Impacts of the Nanisivik and Polaris Mines, Nunavut, Canada.- Assessing the Socio-Economic Impacts of Mining: Case Study of the Landau Colliery, South Africa.- Public Policy Processes and Sustainability in the Minerals and Energy Industries.- The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative: Panacea or White Elephant for Sub-Saharan Africa?.

Blurb

This is the first book of peer-reviewed, edited papers that examines the broad subject of the minerals industry in relation to sustainable development. The book takes a proactive, positivist, and solution-oriented approach, while not shying away from identifying the real problems that mining raises in respect to social and economic development, environmental impact, and human development in general.