For many years, the operations of artisanal small scale miners have been heavily dependent on mercury as the main method for gold recovery and has left extensive levels of the chemical (mercury) in the environment through the dumping and washing away of tailings in the water bodies and soil. The Artisanal Small scale Gold Mining […]
Solidaridad and Pact support six artisanal and small scale mines with mercury-free gold processing equipment
The use of mercury to recover gold is a common practice amongst artisanal and small scale miners making the sector the largest mercury polluter in the world. Artisanal and small scale gold miners depend on mercury to amalgamate gold, which is a process where the mercury is combined (mixed with the hand) with the ore […]
How changes in the small-scale mining sector are impacting the environment
The value of Ghana’s gold export receipts for 2022 alone is estimated to be US$ 6.6 billion. Meanwhile, the revenue accrued declined from US$ 6.779 billion in 2020 to US$ 5.083 billion in 2021. This was attributed to the contraction in gold production, particularly the near-collapse in the volume of gold exports by the small-scale […]