Demining

Demining or mine clearance is the process of removing land mines from an area, while minesweeping describes the act of detecting of mines. There are two distinct types of mine detection and removal: military and humanitarian.

Minesweepers use many tools in order to accomplish their task. Tools have historically included many trained animals, including dogs and rats, but most often in the modern world minesweepers rely on metal detectors or vehicles with a wide variety of mechanical tools attached to them. There also are or have been other methods developed to detect mines, including the use of trained marine mammals, bacteria, acoustics, and other more exotic methods.