You are approached by a large mining company that has just discovered a major ore body in the western United States. As a sustainable engineer, you are asked to design a socially and environmentally...

You are approached by a large mining company that has just discovered a major ore body in the western United States. As a sustainable engineer, you are asked to design a socially and environmentally responsible mining operation.

a. What would you identify as the critical lifecycle stages of the mine operation?

b. What issues do you see as critical in terms of integrating the mine into local and regional infrastructure systems?

c. Mine closure is always a difficult task. What recommendations would you make to reduce the environmental and community disruption that is usually entailed in this process?