Minerals, as the inorganic solids that comprise the rocks, sediments and soils of the Earth, are an essential part of our environment. So, in a sense, all mineralogy is environmental mineralogy. However, the term environmental has come to be employed (particularly in combination with terms such as science, issue or problem) to refer to those systems at or near the surface of the Earth where the geosphere comes into contact with the hydrosphere, atmosphere and biosphere. This is, of course, the "environment" upon which the human race depends for survival, and which can be subject to disruptions due to human activity, particularly activity associated with the exploitation and utilisation of Earth's resources.