Caterpillar Inc Heavy Equipment CSR by GineersNow Engineering GineersNow Engineering Magazine November 2016 | Page 17

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leather. Aluminum is used for
cans, kitchenware, and airplane
parts, among others. Calcium
carbonate, fluoride, and titanium
are used for toothpaste. Lithium
is an integral component of the
batteries of our smartphones.
Plenty of things we use have
components that came from
mining. We can go on for hours
enumerating them all.
The raw materials that we need
to manufacture various products
come from several mines around
the world.
Copper for example comes
from mines in more than 50
countries, the largest of which
is the Escondida Copper Mine.
The Escondida Copper Mine in
the Atacama Desert of Northern
Chile, had an estimated 32
million tonnes of copper reserves
in 2012. In 2013, the mine
produced 1.1 million tonnes of
copper, equivalent to around five
percent of total global copper
production in that year.
Aluminum comes from the rock
called bauxite, with Australia as
the biggest producer, producing
almost 80 million tonnes of
bauxite in 2014. This is equivalent
to around 30% of the world's
total output for that year. The
largest bauxite mine in the world
is the Huntly Mine in Australia,
which produced 18 million tonnes
of Bauxite in 2006.
In the case of the Philippines,
copper, gold, and nickel are
mostly mined and exported. The
largest gold producers in the
Philipp ines are Masbate Gold
Project in Masbate Island, Didipio
Copper Gold Project in Nueva
Vizcaya, and Padcal Copper-
Gold Operation in Benguet. The
Toledo Copper Operation in Cebu,
meanwhile, is the largest copper
producer in the country. And the
largest direct shipping nickel ore
producer is the Rio Tuba Nickel
Project in Palawan.
There are more mines for
different materials around the
world including mines for coal,
diamond, graphite, gypsum,
lithium, natural gas, platinum,
salt, selenium, sulphur, talc,
titanium, and uranium, to name
a few.
Since mining involves intensive
earth excavation and use
of various chemicals for ore
processing, mining, if haphazardly
done, can negatively impact
the environment and local
communities where it operates.
But such impacts can be avoided
by practicing responsible mining.
A responsible mine follows the
law and uses best international
practices for its operations, social
programs, and environmental
management. Responsible mines
exist and they play a major role
in economic improvement and
community development.
Three examples of responsible
mining companies in the
Philippines are OceanaGold
Philippines Inc. (OGPI), Rio Tuba
Nickel Mining Corp. (RTNMC) and
Silangan MIndanao Mining Co.,
Inc. (SMMCI).
OGPI, an open pit gold-copper
mine in Nueva Vizcaya, focuses on
improvement of local education
opportunities, community health
and infrastructure, cultural
preservation, business and
development
opportunities,
conservation of the environment,
and local employment support
through its 'We Care" Program.
"OceanaGold is now ready to
construct our 18-classroom
building. They also provide us
with instructional materials, and
other supports such as special
trainings. With the support of
OceanaGold,
I believe that
ENVHS will become a very good
school. We will meet the standard
given to us by the Department
of Education.", Osmundo Espejo,
school principal of Eastern Nueva
NOVEMBER 2016
Mining Engineering and Its Importance
17