Minerals
Materials used daily are;
- Spoons and cooking pans- aluminum
- Toothpaste- Fluorite
- Television cables and glass- Lead
- Food flavors and medicine- sodium carbonate
- Mirrors and electric kettles- silver
Factors prohibiting mining
Other than economic factors, mining is also affected by social and political factors that tend to make companies endure more challenges in exploiting the natural resources.
Social challenges
The fact that mining may require individuals to vacate their inhabitation is a major challenge when on the part of companies who express interest in exploiting the natural resources of a particular region. Also natives in the areas that are rich in minerals may hinder mining since they regard the areas as traditional areas and trying to interfere with their contextual setting may be regarded as interference with their traditions thus resistance. The health hazards that arise as a result of mining act as a fatal aftermath of the mining process. These may in turn lead to strict legislations prohibiting the process (Kellow & Simms 2013). The financial and economic benefits of mining rarely benefit the locals who inhabit the mining grounds. This is as a result of the miners only interested in the benefits and not the social welfare of the area from which the materials are from.
Political factors
Government legislations are strict when it comes to mining making it hard for miners to engage in the mining process with easy. Also, taxes and mining fees are escalated making it hard for small-scale miners to be able to engage in the process. Lack of legislation to control the rate at which individuals engage in mining also proves difficult for miners to effectively carry out the process. Cross-border mining has also been affected by competition among countries that engage in mining (Kellow & Simms 2013).
References
Kellow, A., & Simms, M. (2013). Policy Change and Industry Associability: The Australian Mining Sector. Australian Journal Of Public Administration, 72(1), 41-54. doi:10.1111/1467-8500.12008