opencast mining
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In an opencast copper mine in Chile, an explosion is used to break up the deposit of ore, which can then be removed in trucks or by railway to the mill, where it is crushed and any waste material removed. The ore is then taken to the smelting plant. Chile has established itself as a leading copper producer.
Mining at the surface rather than underground. Coal, iron ore, and phosphates are often extracted by opencast mining. Often the mineral deposit is covered by soil, which must first be stripped off, usually by large machines such as walking draglines and bucket-wheel excavators. The ore deposit is then broken up by explosives.
One of the largest excavations in the world has been made by opencast mining at the Bingham Canyon copper mine in Utah, USA, measuring 790 m/2,590 ft deep and 3.7 km/2.3 mi across.
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