More than 68% of New European Electricity Capacity Came From Wind and Solar in 2011

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35. Like many things, it depends on how it is done

Done wrong, it’s a real mess.
http://www.epa.gov/region8/mining/ReportOnRareEarthElements.pdf

[font face=Times,Times New Roman,Serif][font size=5]Investigating Rare Earth Element Mine Development in EPA Region 8 and Potential Environmental Impacts

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August 15, 2011[/font]

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EPA Document-908R11003

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[font size=5]6.0 Potential Risks to Human Health and the Environment[/font]
Mining, and the industries it supports, are among the building blocks of modern society. The benefits of mining to the United States have been many, but they come at great cost to the environment. Over the past century, there has been an increasing recognition that environmental protection is fundamental to a prosperous economy and healthy society. As mines have increased in size and complexity, environmental controls have become increasingly sophisticated. Modern mines are required to comprehensively evaluate environmental concerns at the earliest stages of mine planning and design. Environmental controls are now considered as an integral part of overall mine management (EPA, 1997). However, mining and refining of rare earth elements, if not carefully monitored, can pose threats to human health and the environment. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the nation dominating rare earth element production today.

[font size=5]6.1 China[/font]
According to the Chinese Society of Rare Earths, every ton of rare earth elements produced generates approximately 8.5 kilograms of fluorine and 13 kilograms of flue dust. Additionally, sulfuric acid refining techniques used to produce one ton of rare earth elements generates 9,600 to 12,000 cubic meters of gas laden with flue dust concentrate, hydrofluoric acid, sulfur dioxide, and sulfuric acid. Not only are large quantities of harmful gas produced, alarming amounts of liquid and solid waste also resulted from Chinese refining processes. They estimate at the completion of refining one ton of rare earth elements, approximately 75 cubic meters of acidic waste water and about one ton of radioactive waste residue are produced. The IAGS reports China produced over 130,000 metric tons of rare earth elements in 2008 alone (IAGS, 2010). Extrapolation of the waste generation estimates over total production yields extreme amounts of waste. With little environmental regulation, stories of environmental pollution and human sickness remain frequent in areas near Chinese rare earth element production facilities (Figure 21). United States government agencies, including EPA, can learn a lot from China’s environmental issues related to rare earth element production.

As discussed, mining and refining processes can introduce radionuclides, rare earth elements, metals, and other potential contaminants into the environment at unnaturally high rates. Once introduced into the environment, the potential contaminants can be redistributed through the three “environmental mediums.” These three mediums include air, soil, and water. Living organisms depend on environmental mediums with stable chemical properties for their survival. The release of the possible contaminants from rare earth element production could alter the properties of the three environmental mediums. The upcoming sections will discuss how the possible contaminants could be found in the environment and toxicology of the possible contaminants to organisms.

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