Earth's Scars

Environmental & Science Education, STEM, Earth Science, Geology, Society

Edward Hessler

“One of the penalties of an ecological education is that one lives alone in a world of wounds. Much of the damage inflicted on land is quite invisible to laymen. An ecologist must either harden his shell and make believe that the consequences of science are none of his business, or he must be the doctor who sees the marks of death in a community that believes itself well and does not want to be told otherwise.”--Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac

The wounds to the planet from mining shown in these striking photographs from the BBC are hardly invisible. Some can even be seen from space. Earth is rich in things we have found useful and like, covet is not too strong a word, and many are available only by mining.

In this report by Richard Fisher and Javier Hirschfield "look at the myriad ways that mining has transformed the surface of the Earth – whether it’s the striking, unnatural hues of 'tailings ponds' or the open-cast landscapes that look like the fingerprints of humanity itself. If the ancient ores and minerals we covet are the condensed past, then sadly what is in store is a scarred future."

"A world of wounds."

Our present. Our future?