A recent wildlife sighting of Eurasian otters in South Korea showed that industry and nature can sometimes coexist.
According to Korea News Plus, three Eurasian otters were spotted and caught by camera in the Nakdong River by the Seokpo zinc smelter, well over 100 miles southeast of Seoul. Not long ago, the same smelter was shut down due to the pollution it was leaving in the river.
Eurasian otters, which are recognized as endangered in South Korea, have had legal protections since the 1980s due to population declines from habitat loss and pollution. Luckily, those protections have borne fruit.
Recovery of the otter has also been seen as far as India and Hong Kong.
Otters are important predators in aquatic systems, keeping prey populations in check.
For example, Pacific otters were once hunted to near-extinction along America's west coast. This led to a population explosion of urchins on which otters normally fed. Those urchins in turn overfed on kelp forests, destroying entire ecosystems. By reintroducing otters to these areas and protecting them, entire food webs were restored.
The mining and refining industry generally produces significant pollution. This has immediate effects for nearby waterways and longer-term impacts on global weather patterns due to heat-trapping emissions. Atmospheric pollution contributes to worsening natural disasters, which incur steep costs to property owners worldwide.
Balancing natural systems alongside mining operations will become increasingly important as many parts of society electrify. Displacing dirty fuels such as coal and gas requires renewable energy supported by batteries, which are made of a range of minerals. Acquiring and processing those minerals has local environmental costs, while generating the wider environmental benefits of lowered air pollution.
The story in South Korea indicated that strong oversight of an industry can generate positive outcomes. Seokpo zinc smelter facility managers were proud that their newest environmental protection measures were proving successful.
"The repeated sightings of otters, even in close proximity to a large industrial facility, demonstrate a visible improvement in the surrounding environment," said a spokesperson, per Korea News Plus. "We plan to continue environmental conservation efforts, including habitat support measures, to ensure that otters can continue to thrive in the area."
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