When people are doing a job search, they probably do not think about mining. In fact, when people think of mining they probably do not think that it is a big industry to get into. The truth is, the mining industries is one of the largest industries in the world. When it comes to the things that we love most in life, like electronics or jewelry, we should remember that someone had to mine the materials in order to make it.
Here are some stats on mining that you may not have known:
- Every American uses an average of 40,000 pounds of new minerals each year
- Mining has touched less than one-quarter of one percent of all the land in the U.S.
- About 320,000 people work directly in mining throughout the United States
- Employment in industries that support mining, including manufacturing, accounts for another 3 million jobs.
- Processed materials of mineral origins account for 5 percent of U.S. gross domestic product.
- Minerals account for U.S. exports of as much as $6 billion per year.
- A television requires 35 different minerals; 40 minerals are used to make telephones and 15 minerals are needed to make a car.
- The United States is the world’s second-largest producer of copper and gold.
- The United States has the world’s largest reserve of coal.
- Wyoming is the nation’s top coal-producing state.
- The average miner earns $43,653 per year in salary, not including overtime, bonuses and benefits, making mining the highest-paying industrial sector.
- Mining has touched less than one-quarter of one percent of all the land in the U.S.
- Investment in technology, training and equipment has made the U.S. mining industry the safest in the world.
- Some believe that the reason policemen in the USA are nicknamed “cops” or “coppers” is to do with their uniforms which used to have copper buttons.
- Gold was first legalized as money as early as 1091 BC in China as an alternative to silk. Gold is still the only universally accepted medium of exchange.
- Coal was used widely in England in the 1600’s because of wood shortages.
- Gold is the most ductile (easily molded or shaped) of all metals, allowing it to be drawn out into tiny wires or threads without breaking.
- The greatest gold rush in U.S. History began when gold was discovered at Sutter’s mill in California by a man named James Marshall on January 24th, 1848.
- Because of the California gold rush there were enough people there by 1850 for California to be admitted into the Union as a state.
- The Pikes Peak gold rush in 1859 opened up Colorado and launched the city of Denver
- Homestake mine, in Lead, South Dakota, is one of the largest gold mines in the US. Operations began on April 9, 1876 and is the oldest continually operating gold mine in the world.
- Pure nickel was first isolated in 1751 by a Swedish scientist.
- The Soviet Union is the worlds top nickel producer weighing in at about a fourth of the world total in nickel production.
- Of the 50 states in the union ALL of them mine something.
Mining is an important part of our culture. We use a lot of different minerals throughout the scope of our lifetime, and it is in all of the things that we use on a daily basis. If you are working on a mining site, it is important to make sure that all of your equipment is stored correctly, and that the drilling site is covered. Call Allsite Structure Rentals for a temporary fabric structure today.
