In many countries, elemental mercury is used in artisanal and small-scale gold mining. Mercury is mixed with gold-containing materials, forming a mercury-gold amalgam which is then heated, vaporizing the mercury to obtain the gold. This process can be very dangerous and lead to significant mercury exposure and health risks.

The mineral sector remains underdeveloped and the artisanal and small-scale mining sub-sector in particular has many challenges. As most of the artisanal miners do not have a formal license, they are not beneficiaries of legal protection and other support packages provided by the government and

Mercury releases to air, water and land from artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) are estimated to be over 2000 tonnes each year (UNEP Global Mercury Assessment 2018). It is the sector demanding the largest quantity of mercury, with virtually all of the mercury used released to the environment. The sector produces about 12 to …

Artisanal and small-scale mining for example accounted for 43% of Ghana's total gold production in 2018 (Adu-Baffour et al., 2021). Ghana was one of the first African countries to recognize ASM through the promulgation of a landmark Small-scale Gold Mining Law in 1989 (Government of Ghana, 1989) aimed at mainstreaming ASM …

In particular, it focusses on the emergence of artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) and considers its livelihood trajectory impacts in a study area …

Indonesia is included in the top ten gold producers worldwide (with production in December 2020 alone reaching 130 tons) [ 1, 2] and is host to large number of artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGMs) businesses and operational facilities. The definition offered by Wiriosudarmo (1999) in Prabawa (2020) [ 3] states that ASGM can …

The number of miners dedicated to Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining (ASGM) is a subset ot the total of ASM miners. It is estimated that 18.2 million male and ASM miners are dedicated to gold mining (i.e. are ASGM miners). This represents 37% of all ASM miners. For further details (country data, sources, methodology and limitations ...

Abstract. Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) activities have contributed, in most cases, to the rural development of some African countries. …

The World Bank envisions a world in which artisanal and small-scale mining is recognized as an important contributor to global development. In order to achieve this goal, we must work together to promote better sharing of knowledge and data. Join us in commitment to improve the quality, availability and accessibility of data in the ASM sector.

Mining is one of the oldest economic activities of mankind. Within this activity, artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is one of the most studied sectors due to its high level of environmental contamination and the social problems it causes. In recent years, ASGM in the northern Amazon of Ecuador has increased significantly, and studies …

Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) is economically and culturally rooted in Brazil, dating back to the 17th century. Today, the sector provides livelihoods for more than 450,000 traditional ASM …

Remote Sensing in support of Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining policy development, implementation and evaluation UNEP, GRID Geneva, 2022 Technical document on the use of remote sensing and satellite imagery in ASGM policy development, implementation and …

Defining Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) has remained a point of difference as Hentschel et al (2003) admit, by then, that common definition of ASM had yet to be established. In some countries 'artisanal mining' is purely manual and on a very small scale, and 'small-scale mining' has some mechanization. In some countries, small-scale

Global Trends in Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM): A review of key numbers and issues was prepared by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) for the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals and Sustainable Development (IGF).. ASM has experienced explosive growth in recent years due to the …

Put another way, estimates suggest 44.75 million people are directly and 134 million indirectly dependent on Artisanal and Small-scale Mining (ASM); around half are involved in ASGM [12]. In countries across the Global South, national growth strategies endorse extractives-led development that privileges industrial large-scale gold mining.

Summary. Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is the world's largest source of anthropogenic mercury emissions and releases. These have …

The new in-depth study 'Lessons Learned on managing the interface between the large-scale and artisanal and small-scale mining' includes case studies from 25 mines, …

Broadly speaking, artisanal and small-scale mining refers to mining by. individuals, groups, families or cooperatives with minimal or no mechanization, often in the informal (illegal) sector of ...

Abstract. This paper reflects broadly on how artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) can contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is argued …

The Minamata Convention mandates formalization of artisanal and small-scale gold mining to reduce mercury emissions and releases. In this article, we review the reasons why previous attempts to do this have largely failed, outline miner-centric approaches that are more likely to succeed, and estimate the likely costs of such approaches. We argue …

Sections 1, 2, 3 and 4 give an overview of artisanal and small-scale gold mining, the steps and processes involved and some basic characteristics of workers and populations …

Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) is primitive with health problems determined by occupational, environmental, and …

Section 1 of the guidelines provides an overview of the Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining (ASGM) process, including a description of the primary contaminants released or discharged during each step of the process. Section 2 describes the process for identifying participating s and individuals within those s that will ...

Some of the poorest people in the world's poorest countries eke out a living in artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM). Equipped with primitive tools like picks, shovels, buckets, and gold pans, they work mining valuable resources, like gold, diamonds, tin, lithium, rare earth elements, tantalum, and cobalt, and any other usable …

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is the world's largest source of anthropogenic mercury emissions and releases. These have devastating consequences for miners' health and the ...

One of the main areas of OECD's work in the responsible sourcing of minerals is to ensure that international standards do not further marginalise workers of the informal sector. This implies working on the formalisation of Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM). ASM is a major source of mineral resources production in the world.

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) produces about 20 percent of the world's gold each year and supports the livelihoods of approximately 15 million miners and their families. Many of these small-scale mining operations use the toxic chemical mercury to extract their gold.

Global Trends in Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM): A review of key numbers and issues Report prepared by the International Institute for Environment and Development …

Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining (ASGM) refers to a thriving economic sector, which provides livelihood for over 15 million people in 70 countries all over the world. Despite being mostly informal, the sector is responsible for producing as much as 20 to

Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) activity plays an important role in the economy of developing countries, directly and indirectly supporting an estimated 100 million people globally (International Council on Mining and Metals 2009).The term, ASM, refers in a general manner to subsistence mining, where workers are independent from …