Cookie Mining Lab

Cookie Mining Cookie mining: The purpose of this lesson is to understand the full cycle of mining minerals. We will glance at the economics of mining and its effect on the environment. You will be purchasing “land” (cookie) and “mining equipment” (flat toothpick, round toothpick, paper clip). You will mine the cookie (land) for minerals (chocolate chips) and then restore the land (reclaim the land through the process of reclamation) once you have finished mining. You will need to mine the minerals, quantify your minerals, reclaim the land, and complete the profit/loss worksheet. Manage your time wisely. Time is money in the mining industry! Objective: 1. You will “mine” for ore (chocolate chips) with a goal of making as much money as possible while preserving the environment. 2. Your land permit allows for 7 minutes worth of mining and 2 minutes of reclamation. You must abide by the following mining regulations: o You will start with $180 million, if your startup costs surpass $180 million then you may take out a loan in hopes of paying it back with the profits made from your mining operation. Record any borrowed money in Part G. Profit/Loss Statement. o You can only purchase one piece of land. o Hands may NOT be used at any point during mining (not even to hold the cookie). You may only use the mining tools to mine your land so purchase equipment wisely! o Mining Equipment CANNOT be shared, nor can it be purchased once mining has begun o If a piece of equipment breaks you may fix it with one piece of tape (located at the front of the room) for the cost of $10 million but whatever time lost to repairs cannot be made up. o You will have 2 minutes to reclaim your land—this includes putting the cookie and subsequent crumbs back within the original scope of the mining operation. Additional time spent reclaiming will cost additional money ($10 million per minute), but cookie pieces/crumbs that aren’t reclaimed will be subject to steep environmental fines ($5- $20 million) o All mined ore (chocolate chips) must be cleaned and transported to the processing plant on your paper. o Ore that moves outside of the Mining Area Grid (the desk, the floor, etc) cannot be retrieved. o AT NO POINT should you brush away, blow or remove crumbs- this will result in environmental fines. Procedure: 1. Obtain your land and record the price of land under Part A. Land Acquisition. The land price is as follows: a. Low mineral cookie, hard land: $20 million b. Medium mineral cookie, soft land: $40 million c. High mineral cookie, dry land: $60 million 2. Obtain your mining equipment. You may purchase up to THREE pieces of equipment (you can mix and match). Record your equipment choices under Part D. Equipment Costs. a. Flat toothpick: $50 million b. Round toothpick: $70 million c. Paperclip: $90 million 3. Place your cookie on the provided Mining Area Grid and trace. Looking from the side, sketch the topography (the natural, physical features of the land) on the “Pre-mining Topography” graph on Part B. Topography Study. 4. Near your cookie, trace a 3x3 box that will serve as a processing plant for your ore (chocolate chips) 5. Record the types of natural attributes impacted by your mining operation including the cookie placement as well as the processing plant. Record the number of squares/attributes directly impacted by your mining/processing placement and record in column 1 of Part C. Environmental Impact. 6. Once all data is recorded, wait for teacher to officially commence your mining operation. 7. Once mining has been completed, your teacher will officially start the time for reclamation—you have 2 minutes to move all crumbs/cookie BACK into the circle you traced. Any grid with a crumb will face an environmental fine of $5 million per grid and/or $20 million per smudge. Crumbs left outside of the mining grid (paper or desk)

are subject to a $10 million dollar fine (total). You may use additional time to reclaim at the cost of $10 million per minute. Record this, if applicable, in Part E. Reclamation. 8. Once mining has stopped your tablemates will collectively serve as Mining and Environmental Quality Assessors as well as determine the amount of successful ore retrieved. 9. Draw the post-mining topography of your land in Part B. Topography Study 10. Once your land and ore have been assessed you may eat your cookie. Post Mining Assessment: The Mineral Area Grid contains: ● 42 Water squares ● 36 Trees ● 12 Areas rich in topsoil ● 10 Deer ● 9 Beautiful Vistas 1. Because the water flows from north to south, water that is compromised upstream can have an effect on water quality downstream. For any water square compromised (having a crumb/smudge), all connecting water downstream (below) is also impacted. Record how much water is affected in the third column in Part C. Environmental Impact. Put Xs through all polluted water icons on the mining area grid. 2. Topsoil requires 3 clean water squares to maintain moisture (it cannot share these squares with other patches of topsoil). Any topsoil that loses moisture by not having enough water will be prone to erosion, Record how much topsoil is affected in the third column by both your mining placement and unreclaimed land (crumbs/smudges) in Part C. Environmental Impact. Put X’s through all dried up top soil icons on the mining area grid. (these do not have to be touching like the water squares) 3. A maximum of 3 trees needs 1 square of rich topsoil to survive (they cannot share these squares with other clusters of trees). Record how many trees remain after your mining placement and unreclaimed land and record in the third column of Part C. Environmental Impact. Put Xs on all tree icons that die because of insufficient nutrients (these do not have to be touching like the water squares) 4. Each deer requires 3 tree squares and 3 water squares to survive (they cannot share these squares with other deer). Record how many deer are impacted by mining placement, polluted water and a decrease in foliage in the third column of Part C. Environmental Impact . Put Xs on all deer that can no longer survive in the environment. (these do not have to be touching like the water squares) 5. Vistas are aesthetically pleasing areas where people can enjoy the scenic view. In order for vistas to maintain their integrity, they cannot have a decrease in biodiversity or water pollution nearby. ANY box touching the vista (this includes the top and bottom corners) that has an X is tarnishing the aesthetic beauty of the vista, making it no longer appealing. Record how many vistas are altered in the third column of Part C. Environmental Impact and put Xs over them. 6. Staple your Mining Area Grid to the back of your lab. Mining Assessment As a Mining and Environmental Quality Assessor: Determine, collectively, how many grids contain cookie/crumbs the mining operation left behind-- the tiniest speck counts! Even if it’s as big as this period. it counts! Mark the grids that have crumbs/unreclaimed cookie- later shade each impacted grid. The CEO of the mining operation (you) will record this number in Part E. Reclamation If any crumb/smudge is left unreclaimed on a natural attribute, record this in column 2 of Part C. Environmental Impact Determine how many smudges (acid mine drainage) were left over after reclamation and record in Part E. Reclamation Determine how many pieces of ore were successfully transported to the processing facility. Determine which ore is whole and clean, partial and clean, whole and dirty, as well as partial and dirty. Record this number under Part F. Mining Evaluation. There is a 10% corporate tax rate on profits earned. Record how much is owed in taxes in Part F. Mining Evaluation by multiplying the profits by 0.10.

E. Reclamation Cost Reclamation Quantity Cost Total Additional time 23 $10 million 230 mil Unreclaimed grids (shaded) 12 $5 million 60 mil Smudges 3 $20 million 60 mil Damage outside mining grid 0 $10 million 0 Total 120 mil F. Mining Evaluation Type of Ore Quantity Tons per chip Price Totals Whole, clean 4 4 million $15/Ton 16 mil Partial, clean 3 2 million $13/Ton 6 mil Whole, dirty 12 4 million $10/Ton 48 mil Partial, dirty 0 2 million $5/Ton Total: 106 mil Corporate Tax rate is 10% Taxes to be paid: 10,600,000 G. Profit/Loss Statement Add up the following mining related costs to determine the amount of start up money needed/used: Losses Total Land Costs 430 mil Total Equipment Cost 120 mil Money borrowed from bank x 4.25% interest rate per year for 10 years 30 mil Equipment Repairs 0 Reclamation Costs 60 mil Taxes 10,600,000 Facility Costs (office buildings, roads, utilities) 50 million Operating Costs (fuel, salaries, maintenance repairs) 270 million Environmental Costs (permitting, pre-mine studies including a $50 million bond) 80 million Total 1,050,600,000

Profit Money earned from retrieved ore 106,000,000 Salvage credits (selling equipment, office furniture, computers, etc) 30 million Reclamation Bond 50 million Total 80 mil

4. Were you able to restore the mined cookie to exactly its original size and topography? Why or why not? No, it is not possible to get the mined cookie back to exactly the size and topography it had at the time of creation. The topography is disturbed by mining, and the surrounding environment experiences quantifiable changes as a result, such as changes to the size and shape of the mined area. It is likely that the materials used to fill up the mined area won't totally restore its topography and proportions. 5. Why do you think a “smudge” was analogous to acid mine drainage in this simulation? Since both have a negative impact on the ecosystem, a smear and acid mine drainage are equivalent to one another in the simulation. 6. Is the additional expense of mine reclamation necessary? Why or why not? Mine reclamation is essential for environmental sustainability. It helps restore ecosystems, prevents soil erosion, and safeguards water quality. The additional expense ensures responsible and ethical mining practices, minimizing long-term environmental impact. 7. We put a monetary value on the rocks and minerals mined from the earth. Why is it difficult to put a price on the natural attributes and the ecological services they provide.– trees that provide oxygen, vistas that provide beautiful natural views, etc? Because doing so devalues the cost of natural resources, it is challenging to place a value on ecological services and natural features. Ecosystem services should be priced and made available for purchase, while this idea has acquired a lot of traction. However, as nature is immeasurable, this method just serves to mask its actual worth. 8. If we DID put a price on natural attributes and ecological services, what would that do to the consumer price of materials? Would this be a good or bad thing? The cost of goods like mining would increase if ecological services and natural features were valued. The expense of mining would increase significantly, making it much more unlikely that it could ever take place. The cost of mining would become unaffordable for many, making the products and minerals unworthy in the first place. It would also be detrimental since more people and businesses would be in debt as a result of paying for the mining of minerals even if they might not extract enough of them to cover their costs. 9. How would that affect the demand for non-renewable vs. renewable resources?

Non-renewable resources, like coal in this mining scenario, would be in more demand if mining and the stuff it produces were more expensive. Higher mining costs lead to a greater demand for non-renewable resources since they are harder to come by. This, in turn, raises the demand for renewable resources, like electricity, because there aren't enough ingredients to make it. 10. Describe an advantage of mining. The ability to obtain minerals that humans require is one benefit of mining. These minerals are employed in the production of material goods and energy. 11. List 5 objects you use every day that contain some type of mineral, including the mineral (i.e. Pencil- Graphite) Phosphorus is present in bread, limestone is present in glass, calcium carbonate and limestone are present in carpet, and gypsum is present in cake.