UNIT OVERVIEW

Look around you. The walls of your classroom, the phone in your pocket, the pots in your kitchen, and the wires that bring electricity to your home—all of these come from minerals taken from the ground.

Mining is the process of removing valuable materials from the Earth. These materials are called mineral resources. Mining is important for our economy and daily life, but it also creates problems for the environment and for communities.

In this unit, you will learn:

• What minerals and ores are
• How we get ores out of the ground (extraction)
• How we turn ores into useful materials (refining)
• Important minerals mined in South Africa
• The good and bad effects of mining on people and the environment

By the end, you will be able to explain the full journey from a rock in the ground to a useful metal in your hand.

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