Mercury is another substance that is released freely into the environment as a result of dirty gold mining. Mercury has been used extensively for gold mining from as early as the sixteenth century. This accounts for at 30 to 40% of man made mercury pollution. The mercury can often enter through river basins, spreading the mercury toxins across national borders and into larger bodies of water. Mercury vapor also as serious health consequences for animal as well as humans.
A devastating by product of gold mining is water pollution, this has been for hundreds of years. Today, modern gold mining techniques consume vast quantities of fresh water, damaging to nearby bodies of water. The long term effects include acid mine drainage, which raises the acidity levels in our lakes and rivers, and inturn poisons our drinking water supplies, killing wildlife. The cyanide and metal contamination that mines produce combined with acidic water create a particular lethal mix. Often this can produce hydrogen cyanide gas which is an even more potent poison than cyanide alone.
No comments:
Post a Comment