Draft:How minerals formed in soil and rocks

Why are minerals non-renewable resource ? When we have used up all the coal,iron and gold in the world, they will be gone forever. Rocks and minerals are non-renewable resources. Rocks and minerals do not grow again. Rocks contain useful things called minerals. They are the shiny bits in the rock we can somtimes see. Main minerals mined in South Africa and their uses Soth Africa has a number of important minerals . These include gold,platinum,chrome,iron,diamonds,manganese and copper. Coal as a non-renewable resource Coal is a rock made from the remains of plants that died millions of years ago . It is a non-renewable resource . When you burn a piece of coal, it is used up. You will have to wait millions of years for new coal to form . There is enough coal in the world to last about 100 years . How coal is formed . Stage 1. Million of years ago the climate was different .Thick forest grew in wet areas called swamps . Each year, some of the trees died and fell into the swamps . Stage 2. The swamps filled up with dead trees . Rivers washed sand and soil into the swamps . The dead trees were buried under the sand and soil . Stage 3. More sand and rock piled up on the old swamps . All the water was squeezed out . Slowly all the buried sand,, soil and trees were squashed into different rocks . The trees became coal . The uses of coal In South Africa , coal is mainly used as a fuel to make electricity . We also use coal to make petrol and other oils we can burn . We also use things we get from coal in industries, buildings, and in our homes . We use coal for fuel to ; -make electricity -provide heating -make petrol and other oils We use coal in industry to make ; - steel -tar for roads -concrete -plastics -paper Tar is one of the products we get from coal. We use tar to make roads . Many industries use tar to make roads . Many industries use other things we get from coal . Refineries change coal into liquid fuels such as petrol . We also use coal in our homes . These are some of the products that may contain coal ; -soap -shampoo -medicines - foods A bar of soap that contains tar .