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This study presents evidence on the nexus of banditry and illicit gold mining in Nigeria. Drawing on qualitative research, this article explores how bandits leverage gold mining and elites’ collusion to undermine peace. The paper analyses how the elites weaponize access to gold and alter the trajectory of violence. Primary enablers of this phenomenon are historical neglect of the solid mineral sector, patronage, and the co-option of bandits for informal security provision by the elites with vested interest in gold mining. Future research can examine how illicit gold economies interact with formal financial systems, challenging the traditional informality-formality dichotomy in economic theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is concerned with diverse ways in which indigenous people learn, engage with and construct knowledge in their everyday lives and livelihoods. Drawing on the concepts of lifeways it explores the nature of the shared values, meaningful social interactions and multiple forms of communication – including interactions with human, non-human entities and the spirit world – of indigenous peoples of the Southeast Peruvian Amazon. Indigenous Arakbut knowledges and ways of knowing are the basis of their 'education system' and emerge from their history and vision of the world. However, their lifeways and education system have become fragmented, scattered and go unrecognised in the context environmental destruction from gold mining and lack of territorial control. The article draws on indigenous perspectives and ethnographic research to demonstrate the importance of indigenous education systems for the maintenance and continuing transformation of vigorous place-based lifeways attuned to 21st century visions for the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radionuclide distribution and transfer factors in plants are decisive parameters used to evaluate radioactive contamination in the environment and its radiological health risks to humans. In this study, the activities concentration of 226Ra, 232Th, and 40K were measured using NaI(Tl) gamma-ray spectrometry on soils and on corresponding teff and wheat plant samples analyzed collected from Sakaro gold mining area from Reji kebele, Oromia, Ethiopia. The results of mean activity concentration of 226Ra, 232Th, and 40K samples analyzedzed in soil, teff, and wheat samples were found to be 33.05 ± 0.72, 13.7 ± 0.51 and 220.18 ± 0.61 Bq.kg-1, 3.93 ± 0.4,27 ± 0.61 and 148.3 ± 0.5 Bq.kg-1 and 3.22 ± 0.43, 4.59 ± 0.64 and 229.8 ± 0.5 Bq.kg-1 respectively. Results showed that the activity concentration of radionuclides in this study area was within the limit. The transfer factors from soil to cereal crops (teff and wheat) were compared with the study done in a different country of the world and its values were below unity except for 40K in wheat samples. The absorbed dose rate, annual effective dose rate, external and internal hazards index, lifetime cancer risk, and annual effective ingestion dose were estimated and were also compared with the internationally accepted values. It was found that none of the results exceeded the recommended limit value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Site modification via large and dense can dumps dating from the gold rushes of the 1880s and later in the Western Australian goldfields may profoundly affect the archaeological interpretation of these sites. A can dump has been examined in the abandoned campground of Muslim cameleers that dated from the 1892 gold rush to after the First World War. Here, can dumps comprising hundreds of cans, stacked up and in mutual contact and without other artefacts such as bottles, were not all the unmodified remains of meals and camps of transient people. This work presents a geochemical technique applied to soil samples around these dumps, showing high levels of tin and lead contamination, inconsistent with the underlying geology and similar to the composition of the solder used to seal the cans. This is consistent with the written reminiscences of a family supplementing its income by scavenging solder from hole-and-cap food cans over the period 1894–1909. This process of site modification by solder scavenging must be considered before food-can distribution patterns can be interpreted in terms of primary site occupation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The evaluation of the flow direction of platinum group elements (PGEs) during gold-copper ore mining is challenging due to the uneven distribution and low content. Therefore, it is vital to accurately and simultaneously determine ultra-trace PGEs Pt, Pd, Rh, and Ir in gold mining residue samples. In this study, a method to simultaneously determine ultra-trace Pt, Pd, Rh, and Ir in gold mining residue is reported using Sb–Cu fire assay, microwave digestion, and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The Sb–Cu fire assay was used to enrich Pt, Pd, Rh, and Ir, obtaining Sb–Cu alloy particles that concentrate these elements. An optimal microwave method was employed to digest the Sb–Cu alloy particles. In ICP-MS, the collision reaction interface was used to eliminate the interferences of other elements and improve the accuracy. Moreover, the matrix-matched multi-external standards combined with internal standard calibration were utilized to reduce the error. High concentrations of Au, Ag, and Pb showed no interferences with Pt, Pd, Rh, or Ir determination. The limits of detection for Pt, Pd, Rh, and Ir were 0.018, 0.052, 0.064, 0.035 ng·g−1, respectively, and the relative standard deviation was 5.18, 4.66, 1.55, and 3.17%. Additionally, the determination of Pt, Pd, Rh, and Ir in standard reference materials showed good agreement with the certified values. In summary, a reliable and efficient method is provided to determine various PGEs which is of great significance for gold-copper ore mining. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to examine the potential of soil amendment-assisted phytoremediation using ryegrass in reclaiming abandoned gold mine soil in southwestern Ghana, with a specific focus on the soil contamination hazards associated with metals and metalloids. A pot experiment lasting 60 days was carried out to assess the efficacy of soil amendments, such as compost, iron oxide, and poultry manure, in mitigating environmental hazards. Three soil contamination indices (soil contamination = CF, enrichment factor = ER, and pollution load index = PLI) were used to calculate the extent of soil contamination, enrichment, and pollution of the sites with Co, Hg, Ni, Mo, Se, Sb, and Pb. The findings show that Hg made the greatest contribution (with a maximum soil CF of 18.0) to the overall PLI, with a maximum value of 74.4. The sites were averagely and consequently enriched with toxic elements in the decreasing order: Ni (ER = 33.3) > Mo (20.5) > Sb (14.1) > Pb (11.0) > Hg (7.9) > Se (2.1). The bioaccumulation factor (BCF > 1) suggests that ryegrass has the ability to phytostabilize Co, Hg, Mo, and Ni. This means that the plant may store these elements in its roots, potentially decreasing their negative effects on the environment and human health. Ultimately, the addition of combined manure with iron oxides might have augmented the sequestration of these metals in the root. The elements may have accumulated through sorption on manure or Fe surfaces, dissolution from watering the plants in the pot, or mineralization of organic manure. Thus, ryegrass has shown potential for phytostabilisation of Co, Hg, Mo, and Ni when assisted with a combination of manure and iron oxides; and can consequently mitigate the environmental and human health impacts. NOVELTY OF WORK: Gold mining in Ghana has caused significant environmental damage and political unrest. Research on environmentally friendly solutions to land degradation is crucial for restoring degraded lands, preserving ecosystem integrity, restoring livelihoods, and protecting public health in gold mining hotspots. However, previous studies have often overemphasized the use of trees in improving soil quality. Other past studies have merely collected plant species for heavy metal analysis without concrete pots or field experiments. Ryegrass has only been limited to arsenic remediation, and its phytoremediation ability for other toxic elements like Co, Hg, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, and Se has not been investigated. This work reports for the first time the phytostabilisation ability of ryegrass for potentially toxic elements in a Ghanaian context. Consequently, recommendations are made for reclaiming gold-mine-affected sites while at the same time providing evidence for widening the choice of plant species available for restoring mine-derelict lands. Ultimately, the study fills the gap in phytoremediation research within the global scientific community and Ghana in particular. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThe complex hydrogeological conditions and unique hydrochemical environment in the seabed rock often cause serious mine water inrush during undersea mining. With the exploitation of the undersea gold mining area in Sanshandao as the research background, a numerical analysis method for the seepage behavior of the surrounding rock in undersea gold mining considering the hydrochemical corrosion was put forward. A numerical simulation analysis of the undersea mining area in Sanshandao was conducted by the established method, and the results showed that mining the submarine ore body significantly changed the seepage field of the surrounding rock around the stope and water levels dropped obviously in the ore-controlling fault zone. Differences in the hydrochemical environment significantly influenced the distribution of the seepage field of the surrounding rock. The calculation results based on three fluids with different pH values show that the head variation range is the largest when pH = 2, followed by pH = 4, and pH = 7 has the smallest head variation range. The water inflow in the stope was also directly affected by the hydrochemical environment. With the change of pH, the water inflow at each boundary of the stope increases exponentially. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The redox condition, a key parameter of mineralization, is one of the most difficult parameters to constrain precisely. Here we employ electron probe and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) to analyse sulphur (S) in apatite grains from five granitoid plutons that are differentially related to gold mineralization in the world-class gold fields of Jiaodong, Xiaoqinling, and Wutai-Hengshan within the North China Craton (NCC) to constrain the redox condition of melt. The results show increasing order of the apatite S content and S6+/ΣS ratios in the Linglong (only spatially close the Jiaodong gold deposits), Sunzhuang (related with the Yixingzhai gold deposits), Huashan (weakly related with the Xiaoqinling gold deposits), Wenyu (closely related with the Xiaoqinling gold deposits) and Guojialing plutons (closely related with the world-class Jiaodong gold deposits), indicating that the oxidation state increased from the Linglong pluton to the Guojialing pluton. The S concentrations of Guojialing, Wenyu, Huashan and Sunzhuang plutons, are estimated using previous methods are, 120–208 ppm, 107–138 ppm, 72–77 ppm and 10–74 ppm, respectively. Combined with the regional differences in gold mineralization in the North China Craton, the gradual increase in mineralization scale is consistent with the trend of increasing oxidation state in the granitoid plutons from Wutai-Hengshan to Xiaoqinling to Jiaodong goldfields, thus also underpinning the contribution of Mesozoic granites to gold mineralization in the North China Craton through providing the thermal energy and medium for the activation and migration of ore-forming fluids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Curso de el río Atrato. Plan de la Provincia del Zitará, created in the final quarter of the eighteenth century, offers an encyclopedic yet stylized look at the Atrato River, a major fluvial thoroughfare in the Colombian Chocó and an important gold mining region in New Granada. These documents offer a seemingly exhaustive snapshot of society, ethnicity, demography, hydrography, geography, and economy found in no other map of the region. Nevertheless, a close reading of map and text reveals that they exaggerate economic opportunity and minimize the dangers posed by native Cuna Indians and foreign adversaries. Additionally, these documents present an enigma. We do not know who created them or for whom they were created. We do not know precisely when they were made or why. And, for decades, their whereabouts have long been a mystery. In this article, I rediscover the location of map and descripción and present evidence to suggest that at least two versions of map and text exist. The map's argument, centered on increasing mining yields in the region, places it within a genre of persuasive cartography that petitioned for resources, including settlers, enslaved labor, supplies, defense, and/or infrastructure. A careful analysis of the Atrato map and text underscores how such pleas were specific to time and place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most of Africa's illegal mining operations are conducted in rural areas, but along the Red Sea coast, they primarily occur in the Eastern Desert, where they are regarded as the major source of revenue. Soil samples were collected and examined at an illegal gold mining site in the far south of Egypt's Eastern Desert to determine the toxicity levels of eight heavy metals for pollution load index (PLI), Igeo, and health (Au, Ag, As, Hg, Ni, Cr, Zn, and Pb). The methodology used in this study was categorized into fieldwork with restricted rules within the visit, soil samples collected from the field, chemical analyses for heavy metals, and statistical analyses by applying six equations to define the environmental status of the study area. It was found that the PLI increases contamination as an environmental risk grade, Igeo, reaches grade 6, which is highly contaminated, and the average hazard index (HI) for the individual elements is high (>0.01). The health risk assessment results for Ni and Cr showed that oral intake was the main mode of exposure to heavy metals in the tailings of illegal mines. In addition, the average levels of As, Hg, Cr, Ni, Pb, and Zn were higher than the equivalent background levels for soils. Thus, adult cancer risk (CR) exceeds the permissible level of 10−4. The illicit mining activities in the Eastern Desert also resulted in heavy metal contamination with substantial noncarcinogenic hazards for As and Zn, necessitating urgent remediation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to isolate Nitrogen-fixing bacteria from tailing and heavy metal (HM) polluted soils and examine their effectiveness as a plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) to increase foxtail millet plant growth. We analyzed artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) sites in Pongkor Village, West Java, Indonesia, and identified nine areas with significant contamination of Mercury (Hg), Lead (Pb), Cadmium (Cd), Chromium (Cr), and Arsenic (As). We isolated sixteen strains of nitrogen-fixing bacteria different carbon sources. We identified three strains (3.2.h, 4.2.b, and 9.2.a) that the most robust nitrogenase activity and indole acetic acid (IAA) production. They were identified based on their molecular characteristics (16S rRNA) as Ralstonia pickettii strain LMQOTU12, Azotobacter chroococcum subsp. isscasi strain P205, and Azotobacter chroococcum subsp. isscasi strain P205. The three isolates were inoculated to foxtail millet plant grown under Andosol slightly acidic (pH 5.8), moderate nitrogen content (0.26%). The three strains isolates demonstrated significant enhancement to foxtail millet plants' growth. Improvements (compared to control) in shoot dry weight: 8% (3.2.h), 32% (4.2.b), 88% (9.2.a); longest root length: 88.71% (3.2.h), 108.90% (4.2.b), 140.16%; root dry weight: 350% (3.2.h), 450% (4.2.b), 250% (9.2.a); and root-shoot ratio 312% (3.2.h), 312% (4.2.b), 75% (9.2.a). This study demonstrates that the three strains are potential PGPRs for increasing plant growth of foxtail millet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was to assess the concentrations and dangers of heavy metal contamination in soil and food crops on farmlands around an alluvial gold mining site in Ghana. At the sites, 40 soil samples were obtained from ten randomly dug mini holes at depths of 0 to 40 cm as well as 12 cassavas which were analyzed for cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn). Concentrations of Cd (0.08 g/kg), Pb (0.44 mg/kg), Cu (0.27 mg/kg), and Zn (1.74 mg/kg) in the soil were found to be below the WHO/GEPA guidelines. The mean concentrations of Cd (0.65 mg/kg) and Pb (1.36 mg/kg) were beyond the WHO/GEPA stipulated limit except for Cu and Zn in food crops. Bioaccumulation factor > 1 was recorded for Cd and Zn, which implies possible health risks. Values for non-carcinogenic health risks in adults and children ranged from 0 to 0.002, with the ingestion route representing the highest contributor. Cancer risk assessments for the exposure routes were all above the US EPA tolerable range of 1.0 × 10−6 to 1 × 10−4, with Cd being the highest contributor to cancer risk. The results from this study indicate that the populace is at risk of potential health problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dominant structural fabric in the Eastern Goldfields is the steep north- to north-northwest-trending S2 foliation that is axial planar to upright F2 folds, developed during intense horizontal east–west shortening (D2–4 event). These structures consistently overprint D1 structures, which comprise layer-parallel S1 foliation, extensional shears, thrusts and recumbent F1 folds. The D1 event represents a separate and distinct episode of deformation with a markedly different stress regime (dominant vertical σ1), compared with the stress regime during the D2–4 events (horizontal east–west oriented σ1). There is little evidence for pre-2670 Ma ductile deformation in the Eastern Goldfields, as: (1) the ca 2730–2670 Ma greenstone sequences are deposited conformably on the older ca 2800 Ma greenstone sequences, with the first significant angular unconformities observed at the base of the post greenstone late basins; (2) a lack of schist or gneiss clasts in the late basins suggests that the surrounding uplifted sequence was largely undeformed; (3) the layer-parallel S1 foliation is observed throughout the 2720–2670 Ma greenstone sequence; and (4) the dominant low north- and south-plunges of F2 folds suggest that the sequence was predominantly flat-lying prior to strong east–west shortening (D2–4 events). The ca 2670–2655 Ma D1 event represents a period of sagduction that occurred immediately after cessation of rifting as a result of gravitational instability from deposition of dense, cold, greenstone sequences onto thinned, light, hot felsic crust. Late basins represent depocentres on the sinking greenstones during sagduction. Marked contrasts in the structural style of gold deposits, metallogeny and fluid sources, typically attributed to progressive deformation during orogenesis, could instead reflect temporally distinct mineralising events during changing tectonic regimes. In the East Yilgarn, an early plumbing system dominated by north-northwest-trending basin-controlling structures was likely established during rifting and focused fluids during multiple hydrothermal circulation events. ca 2720–2670 Ma greenstone sequences in the Eastern Goldfields were deposited in intracratonic rift basins. Rifting triggered an episode of sagduction that formed the early dome-and-basin geometry of the Eastern Goldfields and the onset of orogenesis at ca 2650 Ma (D2–4 events) modified the existing dome-and-basin geometry. Late basins represent depocentres on sinking greenstone sequences during sagduction. Gold mineralisation occurred throughout the changing tectonic regimes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we test a long-held assumption regarding Otago, New Zealand, goldfields life and death- that scurvy was a ubiquitous and persistent cause of misery and death among the goldminers. We will also explore a parallel argument that the Chinese market gardeners played a large role in stamping out the disease in the goldfields. Through the interrogation of various archival medical primary sources, we show that scurvy was indeed a terrible scourge in the Otago goldfields, but only during the initial rushes into new regions. We also argue that while Chinese market gardeners undoubtedly contributed to a more nutritious and varied diet for European miners and settlers, scurvy had already markedly reduced in frequency by the time of their arrival in the gold fields. Patient-oriented accounts of scurvy in the gold demonstrate the clinical and functional cost of scurvy in during the initial gold rushes of Otago. Furthermore, individual stories of previously anonymous patients found locked in these archival sources demonstrate the importance of re-humanising the past to understand the biological and social context of these frontier times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to identify critical points by calculating the water footprint (WF) of a mine and assessing the environmental impact of this water usage. Utilising the Water Footprint Assessment (WFA) methodology for critical points and the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology for environmental impact, results reveal that, among the identified hotspots, the highest blue water footprint is associated with the lost return flow, measuring 260.61 m3/kg Au. Regarding the grey water footprint, arsenic exhibits the highest value, measuring 1.777 m3/kg Au. Among the five impact categories, climate change human health emerges as the most environmentally affected category. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article builds on the recognition that the extraction of minerals assumed over the last few decades a transcendence of geological space-time and a corresponding expansion at planetary scale. Little attention was devoted to the long-term but currently abandoned mines awaiting their potential reopening and can be said to find themselves at a juncture. On the one hand, they confront a complex heritage of past mining operations (including pollution), vivid memories surrounding past practices and their residents' work relationships. On the other hand, there is still the remote but distinct possibility of experiencing a mining renaissance, under the conditions of the so-called planetary mine. We ask what are the affective, cognitive and corporeal dimensions of the local experience of transitioning from the past practices toward an uncertain future of grand-scale mineral exploitation. Based on 39 semi-structured interviews conducted in the mining towns of Zlatna, Abrud and Baia de Arieș and surrounding villages, we address several topics that emerged from the interviews: hope and hopelessness, dependence on the mine and denial of pollution. Our findings provide a nuanced understanding of how bottom-up development can be conceived and what are the challenges of the current phase of planetary mining. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the author discusses articles within the issue on topics including early manifestations of mineworker struggles in the gold mines, impact of climate shifts on early Dutch colonialism in Cape Town, South Africa, and human-wildlife conflict and droughts in Zimbabwe.

The history of black labour at the South African gold mines has conventionally been punctuated by three great African strikes, in 1920 (often obscured by the great white mine-worker strike of 1922), 1946 and 1987. The strikes of 1920, 1946 and 1987 (as well as the great white strikes of 1913 and 1922) have all attracted considerable scholarly attention. Yet a more limited black strike in 1913 has seldom, if ever, been recalled, despite its crucial importance for formulating racial policy at the gold mines, buried as it was in the violent defeat of white miners and their cohorts. This paper takes up the challenge of understanding management and state responses to collective (black and white) mine-worker struggles during the decade from 1913 to the early 1920s and assessing outcomes for worker participants, white and black alike. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores labor productivity in Ontario's gold mining industry from 1920 to 1970. The gold produced by a worker is nearly identical in 1920 and 1970, suggesting that the industry experiences no productivity gains over this period. Further, labor productivity in the intervening years was nearly 30% lower than these values, raising concerns about the ability of the industry to remain profitable given a fixed gold price. We look at over 180 different Ontario gold mines comprising nearly the entire industry to determine whether workers become less efficient over time, or whether other factors, such as entry and exit into the industry, declining ore quality, or changes in capital stock, are the primary drivers of this stagnation. This analysis considers the impact of events, such as a sudden 70% rise in the price of gold in 1934, World War II, and the post-war subsidization of the industry on productivity within the industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is based on the need for information on the development of research related to efforts to eliminate mercury in the artisanal and small-scale gold mining sector during 2001–2022. In this study, methods are designed in the R programming language to explain the relationship with visualization to observe trends, hotspots, and evolution of studies related to efforts to eliminate mercury in artisanal and small-scale gold mining. Such studies continue to increase, especially after the Minamata Convention in 2013. Studying the implementation of a national action plan is urgent so that the target for eliminating mercury can be measured and the zero mercury goal can be achieved, following the mandate of the Minamata Convention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mercury is a ubiquitous environmental contaminant and can be found in inorganic (Hg0, Hg+ and Hg2+) and organic forms (chiefly CH3Hg+ or MeHg+). The main route of human, mammals and bird exposure occurs via predatory fish ingestion. Occupational exposure to Hg0 (and Hg2+) can also occur; furthermore, in gold mining areas the exposure to inorganic Hg can also be high. The toxicity of electrophilic forms of Hg (E+Hg) is mediated by disruption of thiol (-SH)- or selenol (-SeH)-containing proteins. The therapeutic approaches to treat methylmercury (MeHg+), Hg0 and Hg2+ are limited. Here we discuss the potential use of ebselen as a potential therapeutic agent to lower the body burden of Hg in man. Ebselen is a safe drug for humans and has been tested in clinical trials (for instance, brain ischemia, noise-induce hearing loss, diabetes complications, bipolar disorders) at doses varying from 400 to 3600 mg per day. Two clinical trials with ebselen in moderate and severe COVID are also approved. Ebselen can be metabolized to an intermediate with -SeH (selenol) functional group, which has a greater affinity to electrophilic Hg (E+Hg) forms than the available thiol-containing therapeutic agents. Accordingly, as observed in vitro and rodent models in vivo, Ebselen exhibited protective effects against MeHg+, indicating its potential as a therapeutic agent to treat MeHg+ overexposure. The combined use of ebselen with thiol-containing molecules (e.g. N-acetylcysteine and enaramide)) is also commented, because they can have synergistic protective effects against MeHg+. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, twenty-five yeast strains were isolated from soil samples collected in the gold mining ore in Gia Lai, Vietnam. Among them, one isolate named GL1T could highly tolerate Cu2+ up to 10 mM, and the isolates could also grow in a wide range of pH (3–7), and temperature (10–40 °C). Dried biomass of GL1 was able to remove Cu2+ effectively up to 90.49% with a maximal biosorption capacity of 18.1 mg/g at pH 6, temperature 30 °C, and incubation time 60 min. Sequence analysis of rDNA indicated this strain was closely related to Rhodotorula mucilaginosa but with 1.53 and 3.46% nucleotide differences in the D1/D2 domain of the 28S rRNA gene and the ITS1-5.8S rRNA gene-ITS2 region sequence, respectively. Based on phylogenetic tree analysis and the biochemical characteristics, the strain appears to be a novel Rhodotorula species, and the name Rhodotorula aurum sp. nov. is proposed. This study provides us with more information about heavy metal-tolerant yeasts and it may produce a new tool for environmental control and metal recovery operations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gold coins and luxury objects together play a prominent role in the presentation of Visigothic culture in museums as well as in discussions of the early medieval economy and political history of the Iberian Peninsula. Despite this, there is little consensus about the processes by which gold was exploited under Visigothic rule. This article assembles the disparate evidence for mining in Atlantic Iberia, where plentiful gold deposits were previously extracted on a large scale under Roman rule in the north-west and along the Tagus River. It discusses the contributions of numismatic and liturgical objects as well as the limited direct evidence for mining. It then integrates this evidence into discussions of rural settlement, arguing ultimately that mining should be seen as part of a diversified economic strategy among rural labourers, likely carried out on a small-scale basis alongside agriculture and other subsistence activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People making a living in rural Antioquia, Colombia, find themselves in a double bind: they require a healthy environment to farm and grow food, but many turn to artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) to supplement their incomes. The significant environmental harms associated with ASGM – from mercury and other heavy-metal contamination to deforestation and habitat loss – have led to both academic and popular discourse treating ASGM as an environmental problem to be understood and remedied scientifically. Our research in the small town of Andes (Antioquia region in Colombia) investigated how local residents themselves understood "pollution." Drawing on a literature review, archival research, site visits, and interviews with experts and local residents, we show that rural people understood pollution as emergent from complex webs of relationships and longer histories of government neglect. Exploring how people made sense of harm and expressed care builds on research in STS that demonstrates both the potentials and pitfalls for scientific concepts and tools to understand and intervene in compromised environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent spiritual contests swirling around a five-year shutdown of the Obuasi gold mine in Ghana, one of the world’s largest, have thrown into high relief key features of improvisational labour and cosmopolitical assemblages in de-industrialising settings. People are turning more intensely toward novel mining rituals in pursuits of gold, which spirits animate. These phenomena urge a reconsideration of the theoretical and conceptual terms of analysis for moral economies of labour and neoliberal mining politics. Building upon recent work on cosmopolitics, copresences, and cultures of casual labour, this piece argues for a concept of vital spaces – interior and exterior zones of life and death, of enlivening and deadening – with assemblages of spiritual reciprocity. These multivalent spiritual contests over the vitalities of gold provide a prime context for a retheorization of moral economies and mining politics as cosmopolitics, with implications for understanding labour, politics, and value across the neoliberal world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mineral Resource downgrades can be prevented by integrating better structural geological interpretations into project evaluations. Geological modelling for Mineral Resource estimation is presented as a systematic process of structural geological analysis at the deposit-scale using drill-sampled grade data. The initial step in this process is to use Maximum Intensity Projection (MIP) rendering to interpret axial symmetry and its orientation from the grade interval mid-points at the deposit-scale, thus reducing the modelling process's degrees of freedom to only three—estimating the prolateness of the grade or lithological distribution. This approach contrasts with the brute-force methods for assessing modelling uncertainty because the axial direction is fixed to the down-plunge orientation, thus eliminating from the outset, structurally implausible geometric configurations and unrealistic geological scenarios common in brute-force methods. Adopting this new approach of creating geological models means moving away from conventional mining industry methods that prioritise operational considerations in constructing resource estimates but fail to explain the geometric complexities of mineral deposits. We use experiments and a practical case study of a historical gold mine in Western Australia to highlight the significance of analysing the structural control of a gold deposit at the deposit-scale using raw grade data. Our research is based on anecdotal evidence suggesting that erroneous geological modelling leads to unforeseen Mineral Resource downgrades. However, we cannot confirm this hypothesis because there have been few, if any, independent public inquiries into Mineral Resource downgrades. To establish the underlying reasons for significant resource downgrades with certainty, impartial investigations (modelled on accident investigations in the aviation industry) are imperative. There is a general lack of incorporating structural geological knowledge in creating resource models, which can lead to poor outcomes such as Mineral Resource downgrades. Structural geological analysis of drill-sampled raw grade data allows the structural controls on a deposit to be better understood. We offer a simple workflow for understanding and modelling these patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article seeks to contribute to the emerging literature highlighting Indigenous peoples' significant involvement in and contributions to goldfields society, in Australia and internationally. It does so by way of conversations with Dja Dja Wurrung voices and a careful examination and interpretation of written colonial records relating to the Dja Dja Wurrung, the Aboriginal people whose Country encompasses what is now called central Victoria in Australia. Further, the article aims to demonstrate that Dja Dja Wurrung participation in and contributions to the gold rushes themselves were not without impact on the colonial society in which they occurred. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes the journeys of eleven African captives up to their arrival in the province of Antioquia in the northern part of the New Kingdom of Granada, where Spanish enslavers had introduced thousands of enslaved people, especially after the 1580 discovery of large gold deposits in Zaragoza. Based on the proof of sales provided in a lawsuit filed in 1589, the article traces the trans-Atlantic and intra-American journeys and, drawing on the terms used as surnames to distinguish the captives, examines the socio-political and economic contexts of the Upper Guinea Coast and Angola from which they came. Moreover, it analyzes the official and unofficial captive mobilities used by enslavers in the last decades of the sixteenth century to forcibly transport Africans through intra-American ports such as Concepción, Tolú, Santa Marta or Mompox to the newly discovered gold mines of Zaragoza in Antioquia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A rich body of literature has established the importance of activist framing in environmental controversies. This research suggests that framing and framing contests are nested within broader discursive opportunity structures, which have significant implications for frame resonance and success. While significant research on environmental activism has investigated how activists can fight against new industrial projects, comparatively less is known about how activists can fight against these initiatives in areas that have been historically dependent on extractive industries. We utilise the case of a proposed gold mining project in Western Romania to investigate how environmental activists were able to successfully tap into broader national and international discursive opportunities to forestall the mining efforts in the region. Our data come from in-depth interviews and document analysis. We contribute to this body of research by shedding light on the dynamics surrounding activists' shifts in framing strategies to reflect changes in discursive opportunity availability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The artisanal and small-scale gold mining site (ASGM) located in the forest of Suwawa Timur District, Bone Bolango Regency, was found to be host to a number of unique problems. To solve those problems, we, the researchers, seek to endorse the implementation of transdisciplinary communities of practice (TDCOP). Through dialogue and discussion amongst stakeholders, the concept of "The Health Resilience Village" was derived. Furthermore, in order to solve the problems, our project is leading to ongoing discussions in villages near mines, the development of methods to reduce mercury emissions, and the creation of livelihoods, through TDCOP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to evaluate natural radioactivity levels and hazards of radionuclides 232Th, 226Ra and 40K in soil samples taken from 15 locations in the Lega Dembi gold mining, Oromia, Ethiopia, using gamma-ray spectroscopy coupled with an HPGe detector. It was observed that the respective mean specific activities for 226Ra, 232Th and 40K determined in the mining site were 23.87 ± 0.7, 52.5 ± 1.8 and 391.62 ± 11.35 Bq/kg, and 8.89 ± 0.4, 13.83 ± 0.6 and 423.68 ± 9.5 Bq/kg in the living areas. The specific activity of 232Th was above the permissive limit in the mining site, while for 226Ra and 40K were within the limit. The specific activity of 40K in the living area was observed to be above the permissive limit. The calculated value of radiation hazards parameters; radium equivalent activity (Raeq), internal and external hazards indices (Hin) and (Hex), the mean annual effective dose (AED), and gamma representative indices (Iγ) were within permissively limit. The mean absorbed dose rate in the mining site was above the recommended safety limit. The total annual gonadal dose equivalent value was found to be 494.8 ± 8.7 µSv/a in the mining site. This value was also above the permissively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of arsenic (As) tolerant plants and those with a well-developed root system have shown great relevance in phytoremediation campaigns. Corymbia citriodora presents these characteristics that can be enhanced by humic substances (HS) from organic matter. The objective of the present study was to determine if HS extracted from vermicompost can modify the root system architecture, stimulate growth, increase robustness and relieve stress promoted by As in C. citriodora seedlings. Two preliminary tests were carried out to obtain the best concentration-response for HS and the toxic As concentration. Subsequently, an experiment was carried out in nursery pots with nutrient solution and four treatments: Control, HS, As and As + HS. HS alleviated the reduced growth caused by As with regards to dry mass, root collar diameter and height of the aerial part. The Dickson quality index (DQI) was reduced by the action of As and this negative affect was mitigated by HS. Our results show the positive effect of the HS in alleviating As abiotic stress in C. citriodora seedlings, demonstrating its potential to mitigate the toxicity of this chemical element. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article contributes to the literature on environmental policy controversies. We utilize an Argumentative Discourse Analysis (ADA)-based approachto analyze the struggle for discursive hegemony that took place between competing story-lines in the context of the acid mine drainage (AMD) environmental policy problem, located in the gold mining areas of greater Johannesburg, South Africa. With this article we make a theoretical contribution by presenting and applying an adapted ADA framework strongly focused on the operationalization of key ADA concepts. Our empirical contribution lies in providing a rich and deep analysis of an environmental policy controversy that has not yet been studied from an ADA perspective. In particular, we demonstrate and discuss the complex path to discourse institutionalization followed by the dominant emergent AMD story-line. In conclusion , we recommend steps for updating the ADA approach and developing an accompanying set of guidelines to further enable the operationalization of its concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wickenburgite, Pb SB 3 sb Al SB 2 sb CaSi SB 10 sb O SB 24 sb (OH) SB 6 sb , is a hydrated silicate that was discovered in several prospects near Wickenburg, Arizona, a historic pioneer town northwest of Phoenix (fig. 4). Williams ([7]) chose the Potter-Cramer mine for the type locality although wickenburgite was also found at the Moon Anchor mine and several prospects nearby (Polman [5]). Potter-Cramer Mine History The Potter-Cramer mine is located about 40 kilometers (25 miles) southwest of Wickenburg and 8 kilometers (5 miles) southwest of the former mining town of Vulture (fig. 4). Most of the old mines and prospects are still under valid mining claims, and the Potter-Cramer mine is just one of the many for which permission is absolutely required for mineral collecting!. [Extracted from the article]

As a richly-documented historical case study, Islamic period Southwest Asia provides useful insights into the archaeology of mining and metallurgy. Labor, however, is more difficult to reconstruct from available historical sources, and its study requires a more directly archaeological approach. This paper presents a series of approaches to mining and metallurgical labor, drawing primarily on case studies of copper, silver, and gold mines in Southwest Asia, to address issues of labor provisioning and organization, the social identities of laborers, and the ways in which laborers deployed and transmitted specialized knowledge of metallurgical practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Japanese knotweed sensu lato is a group of invasive plants, including Reynoutria japonica (var. japonica, var. compacta), R. sachalinensis, R. × bohemica, F2s and any backcrosses. Outside of its native East Asia, Japanese knotweed s.l. is an intractable weed, spreading by massive clonal reproduction, and causing significant ecological damage and economic cost. Japanese knotweed s.l. has been naturalised in New Zealand for at least a century and it is now locally abundant, particularly on the West Coast of the South Island, and poses a substantial threat, with large parts of the country being susceptible to colonisation. However, little is known of the taxonomic, cytological and genetic diversity of the clones present in New Zealand, nor of the biogeographical origin of their source populations. In the current study, Japanese knotweed s.l. was sampled from New Zealand, and each specimen characterised in detail using morphological characters, diagnostic microsatellite markers, somatic chromosome counts and PCR-RFLP on three chloroplast regions to create multiprimer haplotypes (MPHs), all of which were compared with pre-existing global databases. On the North Island, Japanese knotweed s.l. is exclusively represented by the notorious female, octoploid var. japonica clone, which is widespread in Europe. While the South Island is more diverse, in addition to R. japonica var. japonica, there is a tetraploid var. compacta clone and several R. × bohemica clones (tetraploid & hexaploid). The majority of these are also of European stock and represent further secondary introductions from the existing adventive range. However, there is also evidence for tetraploid Japanese R. × bohemica clones growing on the West Coast that have never been recorded in Europe, or elsewhere in the adventive range, which represent independent introductions from the native range, possibly arriving with Asian workers in the New Zealand gold rush of the nineteenth century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers the presence and absence of mercury, and why in different social arenas where gold features, mercury can become either pervasive or elusive. To substantiate this argument, the article offers two contrasting examples: (1) presentation strategies at Pacific Seaboard gold rush heritage sites, and (2) the background to the Minamata Bay tragedy and the Minamata Convention's subsequent framing of mercury use in artisanal and small-scale gold mining in the Global South. By unpacking these divergent social histories of mercury use and its consequences, the article identifies the current disconnect between different histories of mercury, and the problematic consequences of this disengagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article argues that the centuries-long history of mercury-gold amalgamation is crucial to contemporary debates surrounding global mercury pollution from artisanal and small-scale gold mining. Drawing on historical findings that examine Spanish colonial and Indigenous metallurgical knowledge as well as ethnographic and scientific research, we resituate the history of mercury amalgamation in Latin America, focusing on the Colombian Andes and the Peruvian Amazon – two regions where mercury pollution from artisanal and small-scale gold mining provokes international concern. We identify the policy pitfalls caused by overlooking the untold histories of the amalgamation process along with the European contribution to global mercury emissions rooted in these histories. By critically examining the curation of presentist narratives in UNESCO's memorialisation of Almadén's mercury mines as a World Heritage Site, narratives that also underpin initiatives by the United Nations to bring about a "mercury-free world," we demonstrate how such ahistorical framings contribute to the criminalisation of artisanal and small-scale gold miners, not only in Perú and Colombia but also worldwide. Our findings present an important first step in highlighting the histories of mercury and gold in the hands of artisanal and small-scale gold miners in Latin America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In post-2000s Zimbabwe, artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) has become one of the major economic activities that provides income and livelihood opportunities to millions of people. The article attempts to make sense of how such mining activities intertwined with the country's political economy and became implicated in shaping the dynamics of local and national politics. Taking the case of Kwekwe district, situated at the heart of the country, the article argues that ASGM as a socio-economic and political activity and a general way of life became the core of contemporary local Zimbabwean political relations, interactions and participation, and indeed a potent motor in party–state expansion and power consolidation. The new arrangements of politics, while facilitating the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union(Patriotic Front) (ZANU[PF])'s strong hold on power and territory in the face of powerful opposition politics represented by the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), also encouraged local actors to expand their own statuses and influence away from political marginality towards the traditional political and elite centres such as the capital, Harare. The article shies away from literature that has emphasised state domination and subordination; this is in order to demonstrate that the relationship between the new political actors (buoyed by gold extraction) and the state is a flexible network of bargains and negotiated fusions, exchanges and appropriations. Largely ethnographical, it engages with an aspect of artisanal mining and politics in Zimbabwe that has yet to receive systematic scholarly attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tailings dam is the main heavy metal pollution source in mining areas. In this study, the concentration of heavy metals in soil and water from upstream and downstream of the tailings dam was analyzed. The concentration of As, Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb, and W in tailings soil exceeded the standard value but Hg and Zn in the tailings soil were far below the standard. Average concentrations of As, Pb, and W in soil samples were above the upstream reference soil. The level of As and Pb decreases, downstream as the distance from the tailings dam increases. The mean concentrations of the heavy metals in water for Ni, Cu, Zn, Pb, and Cd were 106.3, 57.3, 21.8, 14.5, and 8.0 µg/L, respectively. The Ni contents in all studied water samples had concentrations higher than Awata River and WHO guidelines for drinking water. Both geo-accumulation and ecological risk indices have indicated significant heavy metal pollution in the study area. The overall results of this study showed that the soil and water downstream of the tailings dam were not safe and must be protected against access to humans and domestic animals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the extremely low-grade of gold in natural ores, a huge amount of gold tailings is produced in the beneficiation progress, which caused the disposal of tailings becomes extremely urgent because of the increasingly stringent environmental protection factors. The present study focuses on the innovative full component disposal of gold tailings, which including the recovery of useful feldspar and safe filling of the remaining low-value component. However, the Fe content of feldspar concentrate is strictly limited, and the Fe removal process is preferred. Firstly, a clean physical (physical-chemical) separation method, magnetic separation, and flotation were combined to remove harmful Fe elements. In addition, Fe removal characteristics of narrow particle size were analyzed. Subsequently, the deslimed gold tailings (+0.045 mm) were used for the recovery of feldspar by flotation in acidic environment. Finally, the ultrafine grained tailings (−0.045 mm), flotation tailing, and iron impurity were backfilled underground by cementation. Separation results show that magnetic field strength and particle size have a significant positive correlation with Fe removal. As the particle size decreases from 0.5–0.25 mm to −0.045 mm, the total Fe content (TFe) increases from 0.23% to 0.35% under 1.4 T field strength, accompanied by the reduction of TFe removal from 68.73% to 61.34%. Flotation can further reduce the TFe to 0.09%–0.21%. Further, feldspar concentrate was successfully recovered with dodecylamine as collector. The grades of Na2O and K2O can reach 7.55% and 3.73% with dosage of 1000 g/t, with recovery of 86.63% and 74.63%. When the tailings pulp concentration is greater than 56%, the curing strength can exceed 0.5 MPa at 3 d. Therefore, feldspar concentrate meeting ceramic standards with whiteness of 58.63 is obtained, and the remaining low value components are filled back to the ground, making it a secondary resource rather than a waste with environmental threats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Consumption rates of reagents and consumables are typically accounted for in mine production scheduling by simple cost adjustment factors per rock type or mining block, ignoring geological uncertainty, blending, and geometallurgical information. To overcome these limitations, this article first creates empirical geometallurgical prediction models of reagents and consumables by tracking blended rock properties that are matched with observed consumption rates at the operating processing plant. The prediction models are then integrated in a simultaneous stochastic optimisation model for short-term production scheduling. Improvements over a conventional short-term production schedule are demonstrated in a case study at the Tropicana Gold mining complex. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the continuity of gold mining work since Pharaonic times till today, Wadi Haimur is still promised source for gold. Wadi Haimur is located in west Allaqi-Heinai-Suture (AHS), south Eastern Desert of Egypt. Gold mineralization is mainly confined within quartz-carbonate and sulphide-bearing quartz veins within sheared, altered rocks, while listvenitization plays a significant role in gold concentration along the Haimur area. Therefore, critical analyses of remote sensing data were applied to map alteration zones and delineate listvenites. Spatially enhanced images were processed to trace lineaments and weakness zones which may represent pathways of mineralized, ascended hydrothermal fluids. Ground geophysical, magnetic and geoelectric surveys were performed to study the depth-extension of mineralized bodies in the vicinity of the historical mines within Wadi Haimur. Interpretation of land-magnetic data indicates the presence of mineralized veins associated with narrow shear zones. Derivatives and high-pass filters were utilized to map shallow mineralized sources and deduce their trends. Upward continuation and low-pass filters were used to detect the deep sources. Depths to magnetic bodies were estimated using Power-Spectrum, Euler and inversion of single anomalies. Geochemical sampling was performed to test the results. According to the remarkable variation in resistivity and chargeability values of resistivity and induced-polarization tomography profiles, the subsurface lithology was classified and probable mineralized zones within the subsurface were detected. Encouraging results from regolith, trenching, rock-chip sampling and Reverse-Circulation (RC) drilling indicated the extension of auriferous anomalies within the bedrock. Good correlation of RCholes auriferous anomalies depths and deduced depths from magnetic interpretation was revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thallium (Tl) in environmental media poses great threat to the environment and human health. Contamination, toxicity and potential ecological and health risks of thallium associated with mining activities were studied in this paper. Results showed that the average content of Tl in tailings, rocks, groundwater, surface water and mine water in Anka area are 7.89 μg/g, 8.82 μg/g, 0.04 μg/g, 0.006 μg/g, and 0.048 μg/g, respectively while in Ijero area, the mean concentration of Tl in tailings, rocks, groundwater, surface water and minewater are 9.78 μg/g; 18.99 μg/g; 0.004 μg/g; 0.003 μg/g and 0.03 μg/g respectively. The percentage concentration of K, Ca, Na an Mg in soils of the area are 0.66, 15.37, 0.42 and 3.21 while in sediments their concentrations are 0.74, 12.61, 0.59, and 2.61. In the tailings, the percentage concentration of K, Ca, Na and Mg are 0.81, 16.68, 0.68 and 2.97 respectively. Tl concentrations from the media are mainly from artisanal mining and mineral processing of gold (Au), lead (Pb), zinc (Zn) and minerals associated with pegmatites. Single factor pollution index is greater than 1 and revealed that soils and sediments are uncontaminated by Tl while tailings and water are contaminated by it. Tl was highly available in plants of the area and the content of Tl exceeded the recommended limits. Also, the daily intake of the metal is above the recommended limit. Tl poses low to very high ecological and health risk in the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Naturally occurring radionuclides have been reported to occur in high concentrations in gold deposits and with other metal ores in Africa. These radionuclides can be released during mining operations and ore processing, causing harmful radiation exposure of mine workers and nearby populations, and may render the mining waste rocks unusable. One large gold mine site in Burkina Faso, near Mana Village, was assessed for naturally occurring radionuclide levels. The area was surveyed for ambient radiation dose rate. Samples from waste rock and sludge from ore milling were analysed by alpha spectrometry, confirming the presence of naturally occurring radionuclides but in relatively low concentrations. It was concluded that mine workers are not exposed to radiation doses significantly above the unmodified natural radiation background. Furthermore, waste rock piles from mining operations can be recycled and used in road construction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates the strategies used by local social movements to respond to increased extractive industry activities in decentralized Indonesia since 2001. Using tin mining in Bangka Belitung (Sumatra) and gold mining in Banyuwangi (East Java) as case studies, this article explores how local democracy, including political decentralization that gives power to local government and societal organizations, has contributed to local social movements' strategies to advocate the interest of local people, and what type of outcomes they have reached. This article argues that local democracy has indeed created spaces for citizens and social movements to express their grievances. However, results have been mixed, in part due to power relations within local governments, social movements' chosen strategies and the features (history and scale of involved capital) of mined commodities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In land system science (LSS), the globalisation of land use is often understood via trade flows. Fewer studies have explored the power asymmetries and local resistance that shape global connections. Consequently, calls for a deeper engagement with power and agency have been made within LSS. To accommodate this, we engage the ethnographic literature on encounters, emphasising the concepts of resistance and friction. These capture the ways actors position themselves in global systems, resist, and create global connections. To illustrate its relevance for land systems, we use qualitative data from the mining sector of Tanzania, highlighting the emergence of resource nationalism as an alternative form of globalisation (alter-globalisation). We argue that a focus on resistance, friction and alter-globalisation can move LSS towards a deeper engagement with power and agency in global flows, revealing the competing actors, values and visions embedded in land systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]