Without mining, there would be none of the advances that have allowed humanity to improve its quality of life and productivity.
Those who oppose this activity are unaware that the vehicle in which they are transported, the house where they live and protect their family; to the cell phone that he uses today for practically everything in his days, that the bathroom that gets him out of trouble and that the computer that serves as a work tool, as well as the internet and everything that has to do with telecommunications, would be impossible without mining.
The mining activity was essential during the First Industrial Revolution (and in the following) because it allowed more sophisticated machines to exist to improve productivity and make the world know other ways to start their economies. Hypocrisy cannot be put in the way.
However, what we must agree on is demanding extraction companies to be responsible with the environment, because without a healthy, well-kept and protected environment to guarantee its permanence, it is useless for us to extract the resources that nature has arranged for our benefit and development.
The problem is not mining, but the way it is done. When the executives of a company are aware of the impact that this activity has, like any other, they adopt measures to avoid that the aggression to the ecosystem is minimal and can be compensated proportionally.
Many things can be achieved. There are more examples to show that large countries today are strong thanks to mining. In Latin America we have the cases of Chile, Argentina, Peru and Colombia.