Across
- 2. ore.
- 3. The removal of strips of soil and rock to
- 4. A mining technique that creates a large visible pit or hole in the ground.
- 6. The mechanical breakdown of rocks and minerals.
- 8. Unwanted waste material created during mining including mineral and other residues that are left behind after the desired metal or ore is removed.
- 9. Precipitation high in sulfuric acid and nitric acid from reactions between water vapor and sulfur and nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere.
- 10. A concentrated accumulation of minerals from which economically valuable materials can be extracted.
- 11. The ability of a particular soil to adsorb and release cations.
- 13. A zone of leaching, or eluviation, found in some acidic soils under the O horizon or, less often, the A horizon.
- 14. The most fully decomposed organic matter in the lowest section of the O horizon.
- 15. The proportion of soil bases to soil acids, expressed as a percentage.
- 17. An element with properties that allow it to conduct electricity and heat energy, and to perform other important functions.
- 20. The process of looking for minerals, metals, and precious stones in river sediments.
- 21. The loss of some or all of a soil's ability to support plant growth.
- 23. A soil horizon composed primarily of mineral material with very little organic matter.
- 24. A mining technique in which the entire top of a mountain is removed with explosives.
- 25. The least-weathered soil horizon, which always occurs beneath the B horizon and is similar to the parent material.
Down
- 1. horizontal layer in a soil defined by distinctive physical features such as texture and color.
- 5. The underlying rock material from which the inorganic components of a soil are derived.
- 7. The breakdown of rocks and minerals by chemical reactions, the dissolving of chemical elements from rocks, or both.
- 10. The organic horizon at the surface of many soils, composed of organic detritus in various stages of decomposition.
- 12. The average concentration of an element in Earth's crust.
- 16. The physical removal of rock fragments from a landscape or ecosystem.
- 18. mining Mining techniques used when the desired resource is more than 100 m (328 feet) below the surface of Earth.
- 19. In resource management, the known quantity of a resource that can be economically recovered.
- 22. Frequently the top layer of soil, a zone of organic material and minerals that have been mixed together. Also known as Topsoil.