What is a consequence of extracting minerals from the Earth?

Question

Once coal is used up, air pollution will diminish.

Minerals will be unnecessary once they are used up.

The minerals must be replaced.

Minerals cannot be replaced once mined.

Answer 1

The most accurate consequence of extracting minerals from the Earth from the options given is:

Minerals cannot be replaced once mined.

This is because many minerals are finite resources; once extracted, they cannot be regenerated naturally within a human timeframe. While recycling can help mitigate the depletion of certain minerals, the extraction process itself leads to the depletion of these resources.