Why are sulfide mines important?
Sulfide mines are important because the overwhelming majority of base metals such as copper, nickel, silver, lead and zinc come from sulfide ore bodies. These metals are essential to our economy as they provide the foundation for the production of basic construction materials, electronics and power distribution. Copper is used to conduct electricity in every home and office building that uses power. Nickel is an essential component of stainless steel that is used in everything from medial equipment to high strength steel applications to batteries for gasoline-electric hybrid cars.
