Artisanal Gold Mining: A Dangerous Pollution Problem

Most artisanal gold miners are from socially and economically marginalized communities, and turn to mining in order to escape extreme poverty, unemployment and landlessness[2]. The dangers force miners to not only risk persecution by the government, but also mine shaft collapses, and toxic poisoning from the variety of chemicals unsafely used in processing. Despite the many dangers of this activity, artisanal mining operations continue to spread as the demand for metals increases and other livelihoods such as farming, are no longer economically viable. UNIDO estimates that mercury amalgamation from this kind of gold mining results in the release of an estimated 1000 tons of mercury per year, which constitutes about 30 per cent of the world's anthropogenic mercury emissions. It is estimated that there are between 10 and 15 million artisanal and small scale gold miners worldwide, including 4.5 million women and 600,000 children[3]. According to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), as much as 95 percent of all mercury used in artisanal gold mining is released into the environment, constituting a danger on all fronts - economic, environmental and human health[4].
http://www.blacksmithinstitute.org/artisanal-gold-mining.html