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The second pillar of the “Raw materials initiative − meeting our critical needs for growth and jobs in Europe” praises the intention of safeguarding mineral deposits from sterilisation. In the near future, each Member State may protect access to mineral deposits of public importance (MDoPI) in accordance with its national legislation framework. Every Member State should identify its own mineral deposits of public importance to be incorporated into spatial plans. A list of suggested MDoPIs has been created for Slovenia in terms of safeguarding the access to deposits and sustainable mineral supply in the future. The survey of potential MDoPIs is described, and a map of suggested mineral areas is created. 30 areas/deposits have been selected and designated on the national level. On the local/regional level, up to 50 extraction sites were suggested as aggregates supply centres (quarries of crushed stones and gravel pits). Less than 0.5 % of the national territory might be dedicated to future mineral safeguarding. This paper presents the proposed list of potential safeguarded areas of MDoPIs in Slovenia and the MDoPIs map. The list is not closed or finally accomplished, but it is a dynamic system. It will be adopted referring to new geological research results as well as social needs. Nineteen countries are participating in the MINATURA2020 project (Horizon2020 program), and seven of them were selected as case studies (United Kingdom, Italy, Sweden, Portugal, Hungary, Poland, and Slovenia) regarding the differences in the territorial size, types of mineral endowment, and national mineral policies. The project provides an opportunity to engage with the issue and begin the safeguarding process on the national level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the principles and applications of sustainable development as applied to minerals (sustainable minerals). The key pillars of sustainable minerals are well known and include economic, community, environmental, and political considerations. The ideal solution is one that finds a balance between community benefit, economic development, profit, and minimal negative environmental and political impacts. This is, of course, fine in theory but in the .real world. difficult to achieve. From a geoscience perspective this paper argues that non-private sector geoscientists have a crucial role to play in developing the sustainable minerals paradigm to an intellectually mature and usable form. The geoscience approach includes re-interpreting the rich legacy of geoscience data and acquisition of new data (geological mapping, 3 and 4D modelling, geophysical and geochemical information) and contextualizing this information with socio-economic and environmental data (e.g. ethnicity, social mix, wealth indicators, environmental sensitivity indicators) to assist with strategic and localized decision-making, maximizing benefits, and minimizing adverse impacts. This approach also involves modelling the full lifecycle of minerals, mines, mineral commodities, and mineral-bearing land in an attempt to quantify benefits and disbenefits of mineral extraction. One crucial key element of a sustainable minerals approach is a mix between .hard. science and social science and genuine inclusion and consultation with stakeholders, especially impacted communities. As geoscientists we are in a position to explain clearly the benefits of mineral development to society and the disbenefits of .nimbyism. (e.g. exporting problems to countries less able to manage mineral extraction) and promote a .custodianship. ethos of mineral development that is the only way to realizing the key principle of sustainability, i.e. leaving the planet in a state that our grandchildren can enjoy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to present the usability of UAVs for the creation of large-scale photogrammetric documentation of geological rock outcrops, including their inaccessible parts. Currently manufactured low-cost UAV carriers are an interesting and progressive solution in terms of the processing cost for documentation of geological phenomena. Their main shortcomings are compact digital cameras used due their low weight with respect to the capacity of these UAVs. In our research, we aimed to verify the usability of digital photogrammetry with UAV for geological documentation of rock outcrop. This issue is addressed in several papers (Fritz et al., 2013; Niranjan et al., 2007) and produces interesting results. Our aim was to test a mass-produced, low-cost UAV model to create photogrammetric documentation of the surface quarry Lehôtka pod Brehmi. In this quarry, there is a large artificial rock outcrop, which was formed by mining activities. This outcrop is interesting in terms of the amount of information about the geological structure of the deposit, which can be observed in one place. A large part of the outcrop is inaccessible due to the total height of the outcrop, which is about 75 m. The entire outcrop has been photogrammetrically imaged using UAV. The integrated photo profile was created in the software environment Agisoft PhotoScan. For the purpose of visualization, a 3D model of the whole outcrop was also created. Obtained data will then serve as a basis for the model of the geological structure of deposits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents results of a case study on cliff recession mechanism and progressive development of talus deposits around Xiangshan of the Sishou Hills in the southeast of the Taipei Basin. Based on photogrammetric analysis and physical modeling, the geomorphologic changes of talus deposits are carefully examined and the cliff recession rates from 1904 to 2005 are thus measured and tabulated. Our study identified the fundamental control factors on mechanisms of cliff recession and proposed a possible scenario of cliff recession and progressive development of talus deposits around the Xiangshan region from 1904 to 2005. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estonia is rich in peatlands, which cover 22.3% of its territory. About ¼ of them are under protection, ∼ 2% have been assigned for peat production, and ∼ 1% is abandoned. Several peatlands are drained, which poses a challenge to their sustainability. The use of Estonian peat resources is regulated following the principles of sustainable management. During the inventory of Estonian peatlands (1971.1987) the properties (i.e. botanical composition) and quantity of peat were specified. In this paper an overview of these studies is given and new research fields focussing on chemical components of Estonian peat, i.e. trace elements, balneological characteristics, as well as the usability of the abandoned peatlands, are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Management under the framework of sustainable development requires a change in the attitude to ongoing activities, as well as a new value hierarchy in which, instead of direct profit, improvement of the well-being of individuals and societies comes into prominence. In the paper the ways aimed at satisfactory solutions in the case of mining activity are presented. Some difficulties and restrictions are also shown on the example of Polish mining. Owing to the existence of large mineral resources, modern equipment, and services supporting mining activities, Polish mining has long traditions. The future forecast shows the necessity of finding a reasonable compromise which allows for the development of sustainable mining. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Canadian society faces a significant decline in the number of active mines and in the discovery rate of base and precious metal deposits. Exploring in the shadows of active and former mines with improved metallogenic models and new technologies is one way to address this problem. Another way is to diversify mineral exploration outside known mining camps and target prospective but underexplored settings and nonconventional mineral deposits. In Canadian terms, diversifying exploration commonly translates into targeting gneissic and granitic terrains where modern geoscience knowledge may be rare or only at reconnaissance scale and where key regional and local indicators and vectors to ore may be missing in the geological record. Though underexplored settings abound in Canada, only one orogen has an aura that discourages exploration: the Grenville Province. Consequently, even though the Grenville Province provides the best model of a deep continental-collision zone so far studied anywhere on Earth and constitutes a microcosm of continental accretion, it remains underexplored, underprospected, undermapped and underestimated. It is thus essential to revisit the mineral potential of the most accessible orogen of the Canadian Shield, search for its missing volcanic belts, reexamine its ore deposits and mineral occurrences, and explore new research avenues using the best remote-sensing device on Earth: human eyes. This special issue captures advances associated with regional field investigations by government that played a special role in opening up frontier areas for mineral exploration. Papers stemming from academia and government–university–industry consortiums investigate further some of the topics covered by these and earlier surveys and others contribute structural and metamorphic insights that will be valuable in future mapping projects. The advances reported here for the Grenville Province may provide impetus to revisit other Grenville-age terrains worldwide, just as metallogenic models developed in other countries have provided the means to look in a different manner at the Grenville orogen for mineral deposits. Collectively all the various approaches presented in this volume help us to revamp our way of looking at the mineral potential of the Grenville orogen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The results of the studies presented in the paper have shown that in the Upper Silesian Region in Poland, radon indoor concentration levels depend first of all on the geological structure of the subsurface layers. The essential factors influencing radon migration ability are the mining-induced transformations of a rock mass. In some cases, significant variations of radon potential have been found at sites featuring similar geological structures and experiencing comparable mining effects. To find out the causes of these variations, studies involving geophysical methods such as electrical resistivity profiling (PE) and electrical resisitivity sounding (VES) were used. These studies have shown that the measurements made using the electrical resistivity method can be helpful in evaluating radon potential of both the tectonically disturbed areas and the mining-transformed ones. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Since ancient times, man has been preoccupied with knowledge of the origin and composition of the Earth, the great variety of rocks and minerals from which it is made. Over time, the Earth's surface has undergone major changes, changes due largely to various processes and climate phenomena that have succeeded in over millions of years. The term geological processes formed the rock new mineral deposits, which led ultimately to change the soil composition. The feedstock mineral soil resulting transformation is known as the parent rock or mother rock. In soils, rock or parent material, begins where biotic factor intervenes not exactly the depth at which the influence of living organisms (whether microorganisms, animals or roots, disappears. It is therefore the depth at which the content of organic matter is insignificant in terms of fertility of the soil. In the formation and spread of the mineral part of the soil, the first attempts were as starting point pedogenetical one or more factors, which led to a multiplicity of concepts and formulations. Among the first who realized pedologists such studies included the N. FLOREA, stating in 1985 that the formation of soil cover, in addition to pedogenesis processes involved and some geological processes that interfere with the formation of soil cover and they called processes pedogeological. To explain the genesis of soils and for determining their time evolution, both in natural conditions and in terms of their use by humans, it is necessary to analyze the specific and coordinated actions of all the factors involved in these processes (by Gh. IANOŞ and et Al., 1995). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]