Harnessing The Power Of Biotechnology

Climate change represents the wider, global problem and is the most discussed part of the crisis. By now, scientists have come to understand how carbon dioxide affects Earth’s atmosphere. As a result, society, in general, is moving towards a clean-energy economy to reduce CO2 levels in the atmosphere and slow global warming, but there is a catch to this plan. Making this shift requires technological innovations, and those innovations cannot happen without a plentiful and varied supply of minerals and elements being extracted from the Earth.

While this sounds like good news for the mining industry, the heightened demand exacerbates an existing problem: an increase in mine waste. This is not a new challenge, but it is one the industry must urgently address. As more mines are built to support the clean-energy transition, the global volume of mine waste will also increase.

Miners rely on the abundant minerals found in nature. Fortunately, nature has also provided the microorganisms which can become the basic building blocks of a solution to mitigate mine waste and prevent potential damage caused by acid rock drainage (ARD).

A sustainable future hinges on a reliable and continuous supply of metals

Most people are aware of the data illustrating CO2 emissions and global temperature increases. What is not as common is a comprehensive story with more than one set of figures, which puts the overall picture into a much clearer focus.

Consider that the transportation sector alone accounts for 9 billion tpy of CO2 emissions. If it completely transitions towards clean energy, the transportation sector could reduce CO2 emissions by approximately 50%. This is the compelling vision of the future that is driving forward the need for a green-energy transition.

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Read the article online at: https://www.globalminingreview.com/technology-digitalisation/22012024/harnessing-the-power-of-biotechnology/