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The History Of Coal Mining goes back thousands of years, and coal mining continues as an important economic activity today. Compared to wood fuels, coal yields that have higher amount of energy per mass and can often be obtained in areas where wood is not readily available. Though historically used as a domestic fuel, coal is now mostly used in industry, especially in smelting and alloy production as well as electricity generation. Large-scale coal mining developed during the Industrial Revolution, and coal provided the main source of primary energy for industry and transportation in industrial areas from the 18th century to the 1950s. Coal remains an important energy source, due to its low cost and abundance when compared to other fuels, particularly for electricity generation.〔Freese. (2003)〕 Coal is also mined today on a large scale by open pit methods wherever the coal strata strike the surface or are relatively shallow. Britain developed the main techniques of underground coal mining from the late 18th century onward with further progress being driven by 19th century and early 20th century progress.〔 However, oil and its associated fuels began to be used as alternative from the 1860s onward. By the late 20th century coal was for the most part replaced in domestic as well as industrial and transportation usage by oil, natural gas or electricity produced from oil, gas, nuclear power or renewable energy sources. By 2010, coal produced over a fourth of the world's energy, and by 2050 is expected to produce about one-third. Since 1890, coal mining has also been a political and social issue. Coal miners' labour and trade unions became powerful in many countries in the 20th century, and often the miners were leaders of the Left or Socialist movements (as in Britain, Germany, Poland, Japan, Canada and the U.S.)〔Geoff Eley, ''Forging Democracy: The History of the Left in Europe, 1850-2000'' (2002); Frederic Meyers, ''European Coal Mining Unions: structure and function'' (1961) P. 86; Kazuo and Gordon (1997) p 48; Hajo Holborn, ''History of Modern Germany'' (1959) p. 521; David Frank, ''J. B. McLachlan: A Biography: The Story of a Legendary Labour Leader and the Cape Breton Coal Miners,'' (1999) p, 69; David Montgomery, ''The fall of the house of labor: the workplace, the state, and American labor activism, 1865-1925'' (1991) p 343.〕 Since 1970, environmental issues have been increasingly important, including the health of miners, destruction of the landscape from strip mines and mountaintop removal, air pollution, and coal combustion's contribution to global warming. ==Early history== Early coal extraction was small-scale, the coal lying either on the surface, or very close to it. Typical methods for extraction included drift mining and bell pits. As well as drift mines, small scale shaft mining was used. This took the form of a bell pit, the extraction working outward from a central shaft, or a technique called room and pillar in which 'rooms' of coal were extracted with pillars left to support the roofs. Both of these techniques however left considerable amount of usable coal behind. Archeological evidence in China indicates surface mining of coal and household usage after approximately 3490 BC. The earliest reference to the use of coal in metalworking is found in the geological treatise ''On stones'' (Lap. 16) by the Greek scientist Theophrastus (c. 371–287 BC): The earliest known use of coal in the Americas was by the Aztecs who used coal for fuel and jet (a type of lignite) for ornaments.〔.〕 In Roman Britain, the Romans were exploiting all major coalfields (save those of North and South Staffordshire) by the late 2nd century AD.〔Smith, A. H. V. (1997): "Provenance of Coals from Roman Sites in England and Wales", ''Britannia'', Vol. 28, pp. 297–324 (322–4).〕 While much of its use remained local, a lively trade developed along the North Sea coast supplying coal to Yorkshire and London.〔 This also extended to the continental Rhineland, where bituminous coal was already used for the smelting of iron ore.〔 It was used in hypocausts to heat public baths, the baths in military forts, and the villas of wealthy individuals. Excavation has revealed coal stores at many forts along Hadrian's Wall as well as the remains of a smelting industry at forts such as Longovicium nearby. After the Romans left Britain, in AD 410, there are no records of coal being used in the country until the end of the 12th century. Shortly after the signing of the Magna Carta, in 1215, coal began to be traded in areas of Scotland and the north-east England, where the carboniferous strata were exposed on the sea shore, and thus became known as "sea coal". This commodity, however, was not suitable for use in the type of domestic hearths then in use, and was mainly used by artisans for lime burning, metal working and smelting. As early as 1228, sea coal from the north-east was being taken to London.〔.〕 During the 13th century, the trading of coal increased across Britain and by the end of the century most of the coalfields in England, Scotland and Wales were being worked on a small scale.〔 As the use of coal amongst the artisans became more widespread, it became clear that coal smoke was detrimental to health and the increasing pollution in London led to much unrest and agitation. As a result of this, a Royal proclamation was issued in 1306 prohibiting artificers of London from using sea coal in their furnaces and commanding them to return to the traditional fuels of wood and charcoal.〔 During the first half of the 14th century coal began to be used for domestic heating in coal producing areas of Britain, as improvements were made in the design of domestic hearths.〔 Edward III was the first king to take an interest in the coal trade of the north east, issuing a number of writs to regulate the trade and allowing the export of coal to Calais.〔 The demand for coal steadily increased in Britain during the 15th century, but it was still mainly being used in the mining districts, in coastal towns or being exported to continental Europe.〔 However, by the middle of the 16th century supplies of wood were beginning to fail in Britain and the use of coal as a domestic fuel rapidly expanded.〔 In 1575, Sir George Bruce of Carnock of Culross, Scotland, opened the first coal mine to extract coal from a "moat pit" under the sea on the Firth of Forth. He constructed an artificial loading island into which he sank a 40 ft shaft that connected to another two shafts for drainage and improved ventilation. The technology was far in advance of any coal mining method in the late medieval period and was considered one of the industrial wonders of the age.〔.〕 During the 17th century a number of advances in mining techniques were made, such the use of test boring to find suitable deposits and chain pumps, driven by water wheels, to drain the collieries.〔 Coal deposits were discovered by colonists in Eastern North America in the 18th century.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「history of coal mining」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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