At the Lore Lindu national park in Central Sulawesi, 6ha of lush forest is now a wasteland of craters and mine shafts since gold was discovered last year.
At its height, the gold operation there attracted 5000 miners — all using mercury to separate the gold from other materials.
Considered the easiest and cheapest way to create gold amalgam, mercury can lead to health consequences including miscarriages and respiratory failure. In Minamata, Japan, mercury-infested wastewater dumped by a factory over decades poisoned tens of thousands of people, and killed some 2000.
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