Environmental issues with best management practices of responsible mining

Mining, despite the very substantial benefits it bestows on society, stirs strong environmental and social aspects. Mining operations damage the environment and ecology to an unacceptable degree, unless carefully planned and controlled. The rapid, unchecked and sometimes biased activities result in air, water and noise pollution, land degradation, health hazards, loss of forest wealth and agricultural land, drying of wells, rehabilitation problems leading to large scale environmental deterioration and climate change. It is essential to strike a balance between mineral developments on the one hand and the restoration of the environment on the other. The negative environmental and social impact of mining, can be reduced by careful planning and implementation of best management practices in mining (BMPs). Adoption of BMPs is always a win-win situation as these are not only mitigating the environmental and social impacts but also result in considerable profitability coupled with established social credibility. Select BMPs as practiced in mining areas are presented in this paper.