The Non-Ferrous Mining Industry in the American Southwest

摘要

The non-ferrous mining industry in the American Southwest was studied to investigate the impact of changing technology on the generation of waterborne and airborne residuals and on the consumption of energy and water. The study focused on the copper industry and its principal byproduct, molybdenum. Nearly 85 percent of the domestic production of both metals comes from Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. The technology was studied to develop detailed process information for each existing technology and new technologies that are being developed. Process information was used to construct a large linear programming model on the industry. The response of the model to various levels of environmental constraint and various prices of water and energy provides data on changes in technology that would occur under various external situations. It was demonstrated that the methodology used in this study is capable of providing summaries of detailed technical information for use by policymakers in framing and deciding various legislative and regulatory actions. Additional findings related to pyrometallurgy, hydrometallurgy, water recycling, and sulfur dioxide emission prevention are discussed.