After crushing the soil and rocks by hand into a fine powder, the workers pan the soil in river water to concentrate the gold into a wet muddy mush. This mush is mixed in a container with elemental mercury, which amalgamates with the small amounts of gold in the soil. After filtering through a hand-held cloth, the process creates a tiny pebble of amalgam that is 50-70 percent gold.
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2012/03/29/In-rush-for-gold-miners-in-Senegal-ignore-mercury-poisoning/UPIU-2621331611731/
No comments:
Post a Comment