Mercury-Free Gold Extraction Using Borax for Small-Scale Gold Miners

Exposure of Small-Scale Gold Miners in Prestea to Mercury, Ghana, 2012

INTRODUCTION Small-scale gold miners in Ghana have been using mercury to amalgamate gold for many years. Mercury is toxic even at low concentration. We assessed occupational exposure of small-scale gold miners to mercury in Prestea, a gold mining town in Ghana. METHODS We conducted a cross-sectional study in which we collected morning urine samples from 343 small-scale gold miners and tested ...

Injuries among Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Miners in Ghana

Artisanal and small-scale gold miners are confronted with numerous hazards often resulting in varying degrees of injuries and fatalities. In Ghana, like many developing countries, there is paucity of information on the causes and nature of the accidents that result in the injuries. The study was a retrospective, cross sectional type that examined the records of injuries of artisanal and small-s...

IMMUNITY: Mercury Alters Immune System Response in Artisanal Gold Miners

Triclosan, the antimicrobial agent marketed for its germ-fighting capability in personal care products, is coming under close scrutiny. In April 2010 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced it is conducting a scientific and regulatory review of triclosan in FDAregulated products, with publication of results expected in spring 2011. The agency also is collaborating with the U.S. En...

Signs and symptoms of mercury-exposed gold miners.

OBJECTIVES Gold miners use mercury to extract gold from ore adding liquid mercury to the milled gold-containing ore. This results in a mercury-gold compound, called amalgam. Miners smelt this amalgam to obtain gold, vaporizing it and finally inhaling the toxic mercury fumes. The objective was to merge and analyze data from different projects, to identify typical signs and symptoms of chronic in...

Quicksilver & Gold: Mercury Pollution from Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining