Mining operations have been seen by environmentalists and conservationists alike as causing problems. Undoubtedly, the operations of metal and coal producers have caused varying degrees of environmental damage in mining areas, which are often located in remote regions. In the urban, suburban, and rural settings of agricultural communities, the operators of rock quarries, gravel pits, and certain industrial mines have been considered the more visible and significant offenders. Much of the concern has been focused on the concurrent and subsequent physical and aesthetic effects that their operations have had on the land — as a basic resource. Mining is only a temporary occupier of the land surface and, hence, is of a transient nature. Although active mines at any particular time are not as widespread as other land uses, they dramatically change the landscape and tend to leave evidence of their past use. Thus, results of abandonment or closure become most conspicuous to the general public.
