A recent survey
by CSIR reveals: Small-scale illegal gold miners are at risk of inhaling mercury
vapors when the gold/mercury amalgams heated, often in open containers, when
they attempt to extract the gold.
According to CSIR senior
researcher Riëtha Oosthuizen,the inhalation of mercury vapors is a
significant threat to human health: “Although the miners handle mercury
directly, it can also affect the environment. Exposure of people living in
close proximity to mine sites is primarily via mercury vapors from amalgam burning
or gold-melting, or via consumption of contaminated water or fish.” However,
samples of the water and edible fish from the specific river showed normal
levels.
20,000 illegal small scale miners
targeted in a rural community close to a river and gold-mining operations in
Mpumalanga Province of South Africa. Nearly half of the people tested had urine and blood mercury levels
that may cause symptoms such as fever, insomnia, mood swings and tremors.
“If exposure is via inhalation of
mercury vapor, about 80% of the mercury may enter the bloodstream and is
distributed to other organs, including the brain where it affects the central Nervous
system. These effects may be irreversible. Metallic mercury may also cross the
placenta of pregnant women,” she explains. The study was complicated by the
fact that most of these mining operations are taking place illegally, without mining
permits or the permission of the owners. In addition the miners are mostly illiterate
and therefore generally unaware of the danger associated with the use of mercury
in the amalgamation process. After completion of the survey those individuals with
elevated mercury levels in their urine and blood were referred to a local
occupational outpatient clinic specializing in mercury poisoning.
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