Mining for the Next Million Years

[fastpat]

A very interesting viewpoint on the use and acquisition of natural resources.

Mining for the Next Million Years

by George Reisman

For many years, I've been pointing out that the entire mass of the earth, from the upper limits of its atmosphere 4,000 miles straight down to its core, consists of nothing but solidly packed chemical elements. There is not one cubic centimeter anywhere in the earth's mass that is not some chemical element or other, or some combination of chemical elements. This, I've said, is nature's contribution to the supply of natural resources, along with all of the enormous quantities of energy that go with it, from the energy contained in fossil fuels, uranium, wind, water, and the earth's core to the energy contained in thunderstorms and static electricity.

How much of this immense quantity of matter and energy can be transformed into the narrower category of natural resources that are economically useable by and accessible to man depends on the state of science, technology, and supply of capital equipment. In other words, it depends on the extent of man's knowledge of nature and the degree of his physical power over it. As man enlarges this knowledge and power, he increases the fraction of nature that constitutes economically useable, accessible natural resources. In the process, he transforms what had up to then been mere nature-given things into economic goods and wealth.

I've also always pointed out that up to now our power over nature - our ability to actually get at its contents and direct them to the satisfaction of our needs - has been measured in depths of feet rather than miles and has essentially been confined just to the thirty percent or so of the earth's surface that is land. The clear implication is that we are still at the very beginning of our ability extract economically useable natural resources from nature.

I've now gathered some empirical data that indicates just how modest man's mining activities actually are compared to the size of the earth. For example, total global production of petroleum is approximately 30 billion barrels per year. Each barrel of petroleum measures approximately .16 of a cubic meter. This means that in terms of cubic meters, the physical volume of all the petroleum extracted in the world in a year is .16 times 30 billion, which is 4.8 billion cubic meters. Since a thousand meters equals 1 kilometer, a billion cubic meters translates into a mere 1 cubic kilometer. So the physical volume of total annual global petroleum production is presently 4.8 cubic kilometers. And because 1 cubic mile equals approximately 4.17 cubic kilometers, this means that all of the world's petroleum production in a year represents about 1.15 cubic miles.Read the full linked article

[Moneyguy1]

It ain't the fact that the earth is chock full of valuable stuff, the problem is accessing it economically and safely. They have problems even tapping geothermal power, and that's available only a few miles down! I forgot how much gold there is in a cubic mile of seawater, but it is considerable. Same problem: ease of access at the present time is not technologically feasible.

New methods of "harvesting" will need to be developed.

[fastpat]

Originally posted by Moneyguy1
It ain't the fact that the earth is chock full of valuable stuff, the problem is accessing it economically and safely. They have problems even tapping geothermal power, and that's available only a few miles down! I forgot how much gold there is in a cubic mile of seawater, but it is considerable. Same problem: ease of access at the present time is not technologically feasible.

New methods of "harvesting" will need to be developed.

I think the author agreed with you, as do I. One issue we must eliminate, is the stoppage of the use of natural resources by America's Luddite community.

[M.D. Holloway]

Working mines for the past several years has taught me a few things - 1) There is a bunch of minerals available, more than anyone outside of the mining community can imagine - includes gems and metal (including gold, silver, platinum. 2) The cost to get it out is high but the profit margins more than make up for it. 3) The mine corp sets the standard for how much is pulled and what new lines are established - it is all built around market profitablity. Money is made in metal trae and the stock trade of folks that pulled metal. 4) Recycling metal has a great influence - aluminum and copper as well as iron recycling has had a bit of a factor in metal prices. 5) Takes a lot of diesel to run a mine, a lot of elestricity as well.

[fastpat]

Originally posted by LubeMaster77
Working mines for the past several years has taught me a few things - 1) There is a bunch of minerals available, more than anyone outside of the mining community can imagine - includes gems and metal (including gold, silver, platinum. 2) The cost to get it out is high but the profit margins more than make up for it. 3) The mine corp sets the standard for how much is pulled and what new lines are established - it is all built around market profitablity. Money is made in metal trae and the stock trade of folks that pulled metal. 4) Recycling metal has a great influence - aluminum and copper as well as iron recycling has had a bit of a factor in metal prices. 5) Takes a lot of diesel to run a mine, a lot of elestricity as well.

Some radio personality, a local one I think, read a short paragraph on the dissipation of natural resources which stated that ruin and rags were just around the corner all due to depletion of available, necessary resources. It was written in the early middle ages, around 1100 if memory serves. We'd laugh about that today, and deservedly so.

Anyone who thinks natural resources are nearing depletion simply hasn't looked at the real facts.

[M.D. Holloway]

As well as those that think we are running out of space. Take a drive through the midwest. There are plenty of corn, wheat and bean fields but there is also a ton of undeveloped land. The northern states like SD, ND, Montana, Wyoming, Idaho might be rough in the winter but are pretty much untouched, consider the Southwest - water is tough but the climate is a bit better year round and the place is filthy with land. Heck, even Penn and NY State are pretty vast and unspoiled.

Don't get me wrong, I don't want to pave it all over but for those who think things are getting too tight, blame it on developers and town management. There is no need to crowding but plenty of room for mismanagement I guess.