Gold Mining Environmental Impact: The High Cost of Shiny Profits

Unearthing Gold: Environmental Ravages and Human Toll

Gold Mining Facility

In countries like Venezuela and other African nations rich in gold, the highest levels of environmental pollution are recorded due to gold extraction. Despite authorities' efforts to mitigate this pollution, the challenges remain daunting due to the equation of quick profit versus environmental sacrifice.

Table of Content:

Negative Environmental Impact of Gold Extraction
Extreme Exploitation and Harsh Working Conditions
Comprehensive Nature Destruction Due to Gold Extraction
Geographical Alteration of Rivers and Aquatic Environments
Soil Pollution

1.Negative Environmental Impact of Gold Extraction:

For instance, in Venezuela, massive pits are dug deep into the earth in the heart of the Venezuelan greenery, and in other regions of Africa, huge amounts of soil and rock are uprooted to be transported elsewhere in pursuit of reaching the precious metal.

2.Extreme Exploitation and Harsh Working Conditions:

Such open-pit mines are abundant in gold-rich areas in Venezuela and economically and developmentally poor African countries. Those who equate their income to that of high-ranking government officials and wealthy gold extractors proudly claim their work. However, thousands of poor people now work in gold extraction daily under hazardous conditions without any protection or oversight.

3.Comprehensive Nature Destruction Due to Gold Extraction:

They move all that can be extracted of gold with their primitive manual methods to another spot without a moment's thought about the destruction they leave behind. The slow process of nature rebuilding what it loses is drastically affected by gold extraction, especially impacting water, particularly groundwater, changing its chemical and physical nature, taste, and clarity, rendering it toxic and unfit for daily use.

Comprehensive Nature Destruction Due to Gold Extraction:

4.Geographical Alteration of Rivers and Aquatic Environments:

Moreover, it alters river geography, leading to the retreat of forests alongside the environmental damage. There are also chemical substances used in gold extraction that have their harms, and other substances present in the rock. All these materials poison groundwater and flowing water, making villages in desperate need of clean drinking water.

5.Soil Pollution:

Another negative consequence of gold extraction is soil contamination and reduced fertility due to heavy metal pollution from the chemicals used in gold extraction and separation, making all lands where gold extraction occurs and surrounding lands vulnerable to desertification and lack of vegetation cover, threatening the population with the loss of arable land.

Gold mine production worldwide from 2010 to 2023 👉👉 here