Gold mining

gold mine, Wales, The exact date when humans first began to mine gold is unknown, but some of the oldest known gold artifacts have been found in the Varna Necropolis in Bulgaria. The graves of the necropolis were built between 4700 and 4200 BC, indicating that gold mining could be over 6,700 years old. During a series of excavations carried out between 1878 and 1992, several graves were found with more than of gold. A group of German and Georgian archaeologists claims the Sakdrisi site in southern Georgia, dating to the 3rd or 4th millennium BC, may be the world's oldest known gold mine. Ancient times Prehistoric period in Mesopotamia, late 7th - early 6th century B.C.E. Gold has been prized by most human cultures since prehistoric times. Archaeological evidence suggests that humans were mining gold as far back as 4000 BCE, with some of the earliest known gold artifacts dating back to ancient Mesopotamia. Particularly in the region of present-day Iraq, gold was mined extensively. Around 2500 BCE, the ancient Sumerians developed sophisticated techniques for extracting gold from alluvial deposits and underground mines. These techniques included the use of sluice boxes. , ca. 1327 BCE Ancient Egypt Evidence suggests that Nubia had sporadic access to gold nuggets during the Neolithic and Prehistoric periods. Gold mining in Egypt involved both surface mining, such as panning for gold in riverbeds, and underground mining, where tunnels were dug to extract gold-bearing quartz veins. Ancient Egypt may have used gold mining as a form of punishment following a judgment for breach of order, thus condemning slaves to endure this task indefinitely until they were exhausted and died. Gold was associated with the sun god Ra and was believed to be eternal and indestructible, symbolising the pharaoh's divine power and afterlife. Gold has also been found in the tombs of Tutankhamun and other pharaohs. Ancient Rome and Greece , Spain, the result of hydraulic mining on a vast scale by the ancient Romans During the Bronze Age, gold objects were also plentiful, especially in Ireland and Spain. Romans employed slave labour and used hydraulic mining methods, such as hushing and ground sluicing on a large scale to extract gold from extensive alluvial (loose sediment) deposits, such as those at Las Medulas. Mining was under the control of the state, but the mines may have been leased to civilian contractors later. Gold served as the primary medium of exchange within the empire, and was an important motive for the Roman conquest of Britain by Claudius in the first century AD, although there is only one known Roman gold mine at Dolaucothi in west Wales. Gold was a prime motivation for the campaign in Dacia when the Romans invaded Transylvania in what is now modern Romania in the second century AD. The legions were led by the emperor Trajan, and their exploits are shown on Trajan's Column in Rome and the several reproductions of the column elsewhere (such as the Victoria and Albert Museum in London). Under the Eastern Roman Empire during Emperor Justinian's rule, gold was mined in the Balkans, Anatolia, Armenia, Egypt, and Nubia. Ancient Asia In India, in the Kolar Gold Fields (KGF) in Bangarpet Taluk, Kolar district of Karnataka state, gold was first mined before the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE by digging small pits. Golden objects found in Harappa and Mohenjo-daro have been traced to Kolar through the analysis of impuritiesthe impurities include 11% silver concentration, found only in KGF ore. The Champion reef at the KGF was mined to a depth of during the Gupta period in the 5th century CE. During the Chola Empire in the 9th and 10th centuries CE, the scale of the operation grew. The metal continued to be mined by the 11th-century kings of South India, during the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1560, and later by Tipu Sultan, the defacto administrator Mysore state, and by the British. It is estimated that the total gold production in Karnataka to date is 1000 tons. Ancient South America In South America, gold mining in the Andes dates back thousands of years, with the Inca empire employing extensive gold mining operations in regions such as present-day Peru and Ecuador. They used stone tools and simple mining techniques to extract gold from rivers, streams, and surface deposits. Miners in Transylvania used both surface and underground mining techniques to extract gold from alluvial deposits and veins. These methods included panning, sluicing, and rudimentary shaft mining. Slovakia The mining of the deposit in present-day Slovakia (formerly Hungary) primarily around Kremnica was the largest of the Medieval period in Europe. Scotland The Kildonan Gold Rush, primarily in the Scottish Highlands, occurred during the 16th and 17th centuries. Gold deposits were discovered in rivers and streams, leading to a surge in prospecting and mining activity. The Scottish Crown took an interest in gold discoveries, in the hope of aiding the kingdom's economy and revenue. King James IV of Scotland established a royal mint to produce gold coins from Scottish gold. The Scottish gold rush eventually waned due to factors such as the depletion of easily accessible gold deposits, harsh weather conditions, and the political instability at the time. Gold deposits were discovered in Welsh mountains, with reports of gold being found in the Mawddach and Tryweryn rivers. By the mid-19th century, commercial mining operations had begun. Wales' gold gained popularity for its quality and rarity, leading to its use in royal jewellery for the British royal family. Modern era California gold rush During the 19th century, numerous gold rushes in remote regions around the globe caused large migrations of miners, such as the California Gold Rush of 1849. This is one of the most famous gold rushes in history. The discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill in California sparked a massive migration of people from around the world to California in search of riches. The rush significantly accelerated westward expansion in the United States, California statehood and had profound effects on the region's economy and society. Australian gold rushes The gold rushes in Australia began in 1851 when Edward Hargraves, a prospector, discovered gold near Bathurst, New South Wales. The best-known gold rush in Australia was the Victorian gold rush. Thousands of people, known as "diggers", came to Australia from around the world in search of gold, which ultimately contributed to the growth of cities like Melbourne and Sydney. South African gold rush The discovery of gold in the Witwatersrand led to the Second Boer War and ultimately the founding of South Africa. This transformed the region into one of the wealthiest gold-producing areas in the world. This rush played a crucial role in the development of South Africa's economy and led to the establishment of Johannesburg, known as the 'city of gold'. Gold-bearing reefs in the neighbouring Free State province were found shortly thereafter, driving significant development in the region with the establishment of the Free State goldfields. Klondike Gold Rush Also known as the Yukon Gold Rush, this brought prospectors from around the world to the Klondike region of the Yukon territory in Canada. The Klondike Gold Rush began in 1896, when gold was discovered in Bonanza Creek, a tributary of the Klondike River by George Carmack and his Indigenous companions, Skookum Jim Mason and Tagish Charlie. As prospectors arrived in Klondike, makeshift towns and settlements sprang up along the rivers, including Dawson City, which became the largest town in Yukon at the height of the gold rush. Prospectors employed various mining techniques to extract gold from the Klondike's streams and riverbeds, including placer mining, dredging, and hydraulic mining. The Carlin Trend The Carlin Trend of Nevada, U.S., was discovered in 1961. == Production trends ==

World gold production was 3,612 tonnes in 2022. the world's largest gold producer was China with 380 tonnes of gold mined in that year. The second-largest producer of gold was Russia where 310 tonnes was mined in the same year, followed by Australia with 290 tonnes. In 2023, the annual gold demand of 4,448 tonnes was 5% below that of 2022. The total gold demand in 2023 was the highest at 4,899 tonnes. Despite its decreasing concentration in ores, gold production is increasing. This increase can be achieved through ever larger-scale industrial installations as well as innovations, especially in hydrometallurgy. Supply and demand World gold demand (defined in terms of total consumption excluding central banks) in 2007 was 3,519 tonnes. Gold demand is subdivided into central bank reserve increases, jewellery production, industrial consumption (including dental), and investment (bars, coins, exchange-traded funds, etc.) The supply of gold is provided by mining, official sales (typically gold by central banks), de-hedging (physical delivery of metal sold months before by mining companies on terminal markets), and old gold scraps. The total world supply of gold in 2007 was 3,497 tonnes. Gold production does not need to make up for gold demand because gold is a reusable resource. Currently, yearly gold mining produces 2% of the existing above-ground gold which is 158,000 tonnes (as of 2006). In 2008, gold mining produced 2,400 tonnes of gold, official gold sales close to 300 tonnes, and dehedging (physical delivery of metal sold months before by mining companies on terminal markets) close to 500 tonnes. Peak production Like other mined materials, different theories have been put forward for resource depletion and peak production. World mined gold production has peaked four times since 1900: in 1912, 1940, 1971, and 2001, with each peak being higher than previous peaks. The latest peak was in 2001, when production reached 2,600 metric tons, then declined for several years. Production started to increase again in 2009, spurred by high gold prices, and achieved record new highs each year from 2011 through 2015, when production reached 3,100 tonnes. Early estimates of 2016 gold production indicate that it was flat to 2015 production, at 3,100 tonnes. In 2009, Barrick CEO Aaron Regent claimed that global production had peaked in 2000. Barrick's production costs have been "trending down" despite this peak, reaching . In 2006, with gold at , Roland Watson claimed that gold production had peaked in 2001 due to falling exploration in the 1990s, when gold prices were low. He predicted that higher prices and new technologies would boost gold production to higher levels in the future. In July 2012, Natural Resource Holdings CEO Roy Sebag wrote a report entitled "2012 World Gold Deposit Ranking" claiming that gold production would peak between 2022 and 2025 due to the markedly lower grades and remote locations of the remaining known undeveloped deposits. Charles Jeannes, the CEO of Goldcorp, the world's largest gold miner by market capitalization, stated in September 2014 that Peak Gold would be reached in either 2014 or 2015. "Whether it is this year or next year, I don't think we will ever see the gold production reach these levels again," he claimed. "There are just not that many new mines being found and developed." ==Methods==

Hard rock mining , Australia, 1951 gold mine in Kittilä, Finland, in 2017 , New Zealand, in the 1890s Hard rock mining extracts gold encased in rock, rather than fragments in loose sediment, and produces most of the world's gold. Sometimes open-pit mining is used, such as at the Fort Knox Mine in central Alaska. Barrick Gold Corporation has one of the largest open-pit gold mines in North America located on its Goldstrike mine property in north eastern Nevada. Other gold mines use underground mining, where the ore is extracted through tunnels or shafts. South Africa has the world's deepest hard rock gold mine, up to underground. At such depths, the heat is unbearable for humans, and air conditioning is required for the safety of the workers. The first such mine to receive air conditioning was Robinson Deep, at that time the deepest mine in the world for any mineral. By-product gold mining Gold is also produced by mining in which it is not the principal product. Large copper mines, such as the Bingham Canyon mine in Utah or the Panguna mine in Bougainville, often recover considerable amounts of gold and other metals along with copper. Sand and gravel pits, like those in Denver (Colorado), may recover small amounts of gold in their wash operations. The largest producing gold mine in the world, the Grasberg mine in Papua, Indonesia, is primarily a copper mine. Niche, recreational, or historical methods Placer mining Placer mining is a method of extracting gold from alluvial deposits such as sand, gravel, and sediment. These are known as placer deposits which are typically found in riverbeds, stream beds, and floodplains. These deposits typically contain minerals that are resistant to weathering and eroision, like gold, platinum, and diamonds. They are characterized by their relatively high concentration of valuable minerals compared to the surrounding rock or sediments. A sluice box is essentially a man made channel with riffles set in the bottom. The riffles are designed to create dead zones in the current to allow gold to drop out of suspension. Suction dredging can have environmental impacts, moreso on aquatic habitats and water quality. Regulations and best practices are often in place to minimize these impacts. Although simple and inexpensive, it is not efficient as the previously discussed mining techniques. ==Gold ore processing==

Cyanide process . On top of the large mounds of ore are sprinklers dispensing a solution of cyanide. The dominant method for refining gold is a cyanide extraction method, or gold cyanidation, introduced in the late 1800s. Cyanide forms stable complexes with gold, but is highly toxic and can contaminate water systems if not properly managed. This a metallurgical technique used to extract gold from lower grade ores by converting gold into a water-soluble coordination complex. Finely ground rock is treated with a solution of sodium cyanide. The extract is absorbed onto carbon and then removed from the carbon with a solution of caustic soda and cyanide. Gold cyanide is then converted to relatively pure gold through gold parting. associated with this extraction method, largely due to the high toxicity of the cyanide compounds. Furthermore, there are potentials for accidental spills or leaks to cause harm to aquatic ecosystems and human health. In 2000, the Baia Mare cyanide spill in northern Romania released approximately of waste water contaminated with heavy metal sludge and up to of cyanide into the Tisza River. Mercury process Historically, mercury was used extensively in placer gold mining in order to form mercury-gold amalgam with smaller gold particles, and thereby increase the gold recovery rates. First, the gold ore is crushed and ground to a fine powder to expose the gold particles for amalgamation. Then this finely ground ore is mixed with liquid mercury to amalgamate it. Mercury forms an amalgam, an alloy, with gold particles to allow for the efficient capture of gold from the ore. The gold is concentrated by boiling away the mercury from the amalgam. This process is called retorting. This is effective in extracting very small gold particles, but the process is hazardous due to the toxicity of mercury vapour. Large-scale use of mercury stopped in the 1960s. However, mercury is still used in artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM). == Business ==

Small operations on abandoned gold mine in western New South Wales, Australia in Tanzania While most gold is produced by major corporations, there are an estimated 10 to 15 million small-scale artisanal gold miners worldwide. Around 4.5 million of them are women, and an estimated 600,000 children work in illegal artisanal gold mines. Artisanal miners use rudimentary methods to extract and process gold. Many of these people are mining to escape extreme poverty, unemployment and landlessness. In Ghana, galamsey miners are estimated to number 20,000 to 50,000. In neighboring francophone countries, such workers are called orpailleurs. In Brazil, Venezuela, Suriname, and French Guiana, workers are called garimpeiros. These workers are not required to claim responsibility for their social and environmental impacts. Miners risk government persecution, mine shaft collapses, and toxic poisoning from unsafe chemicals used in processing, such as mercury. In Ghana during 2009, the Dompoase mine collapse killed 18 workers. It was the worst mining disaster in Ghanaian history. Large companies Gold mining by large multi-national corporations produces about 80% of the gold supply. Most gold is mined in developing nations. Large mining companies play a key role in globalisation of the economy by linking rich and poor companies. Newmont and Barrick Gold are the largest gold mining companies in the world, but there are many smaller corporations in the industry. Local communities are frequently vulnerable to environmental degradation caused by large mining companies and may lack government protection or industry regulation. Vulnerable communities may also lose their land to the mine. Some large companies have attempted to build local legitimacy through corporate responsibility initiatives and local development. ==Adverse effects and responses==

Impact Environmental impacts Gold mining can significantly alter the natural environment. Gold mining activities in tropical forests are increasingly causing deforestation along rivers and in remote areas rich in biodiversity. Gold mining activities contribute to soil erosion, deforestation and destruction of aquatic/marine ecosystems in affected regions. Mining has increased rainforest loss up to beyond lease boundaries, causing nearly of deforestation between 2005 and 2015. Up to 9% of gold mining occurs outside of these regulated lease boundaries. Illegal gold mining exacerbates the ecological vulnerability of the remaining forest ultimately leading to permanent forest loss. Gold mining clears native forests for mineral extraction, but also indirectly facilitates access to more land and further clearing. Rainforest recovery rates are the lowest ever recorded for tropical forests, with there being little to no tree regeneration at abandoned mining camps, even after several years. Gold mining can generate approximately 16,000 kg of CO2 equivalent emissions per kilogram of gold produced. This would ultimately lead to a collapse of biodiversity, ecosystems, and climate. Gold mining produces more waste than mining of other minerals, because it can be mined at a lower grade. Gold mining is a major source of heavy metal contamination, releasing elements such as arsenic, mercury and lead into surrounding ecosystems via tailings. These toxins can pose health risks for local communities. Furthermore, mining operations use large quantities of water for processing ore and can result in the contamination of water sources with heavy metals, such as mercury and cyanide, used in the extraction process. This pollution can have detrimental effects on aquatic ecosystems and human health. Soil degradation has also been found to be impacted by gold mining. Mining activities can disturb soil structure, leading to erosion, sedimentation of waterways, and loss of fertile land for agriculture or vegetation regrowth. Social and cultural impacts Large-scale gold mining projects may require land acquisition and resettlement of local communities, leading to displacement, loss of livelihoods, and disruption of traditional ways of life. In addition to the possible respiratory problems that could be acquired, individuals may be exposed to hazardous chemicals used in gold extraction such as mercury and cyanide. These chemicals pose risks to gold miners, communities, and wildlife, resulting in further medical problems involving neurological disorders and waterborne diseases. Mining activities can damage or destroy cultural heritage sites, artifacts, and sacred areas, further impacting cultural identities and heritages. In the Amazon rainforest, Indigenous peoples have been killed and had their rightfully owned land stolen from them. As a consequence of this, some have left the rainforest to move to cities which further puts them at risk to disease, homelessness, and poverty. Artisanal gold mining is widespread across Africa, occurring in numerous countries including Ghana, Mali, Burkina Faso, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, and many others. For many individuals and communities in rural Africa, artisanal gold mining represents a critical source of income and livelihood, providing employment opportunities and economic support in regions with limited alternative options. Artisanal mining operations vary in scale, from individuals panning for gold in rivers and streams, to small groups working collectively in informal mining camps, often referred to as 'galamsey' in West Africa. Economic impacts Gold mining can create employment opportunities in mining operations and related sectors. Howevers, these jobs may be temporary. The sector's reliance on fluctuating global gold prices can lead to economic stability for communities dependent on mining. The discovery of significant gold deposits in a region often sees a flood of resources and development, which lasts as long as the mines are economic. When goldfields begin to decline in production, local economies find themselves destabilised and overly reliant upon an industry that will inevitably abandon the region when gold deposits are sufficiently depleted; leaving the areas without proper rehabilitation. Despite the existence of several laws that regulate environmental crimes, illegal practices in mining tends to happen because of an absence of enforcement. The rules for gold mining create ambiguities between the types of 'legal' mining, leaving loopholes for those to exploit. Furthermore, the global gold supply chain involves complex networks of mining companies, refineries, traders, and retailers. Ensuring ethical and sustainable practices throughout this supply chain, including addressing issues such as child labour and environmental degradation, remains a challenge. Responses Human Rights Watch produced a report in 2015 that outlined some of challenges faced globally. The report notes that Fairtrade and Fairmined dual certification for gold was launched across the United Kingdom on 14 February 2011, a joint scheme between The Fairtrade Foundation and The Association for Responsible Mining. The Fairmined mark ensures that the gold has been extracted in a fair and responsible manner. A UN investigation reported human rights abuses such as sexual exploitation of women and children, mercury poisoning, and child labor affecting communities where illegal gold production occurs. The reports said global buyers such as Switzerland, through which roughly two-thirds of global trade transits, need to ensure that human rights are respected throughout supply chains. The "No Dirty Gold" campaign, working with a number of campaigning partners, was established in 2004 and aims "to ensure that gold mining operations respect human rights and the environment" through a call for changes in gold mining techniques and processes. The impacts of mining on the environment are long-lasting, and active land management and restoration are needed to ensure recovery. Restoration costs vary widely between difference approaches, such as passive and active restoration. Additionally, governments have started to promote the formalization of gold mining. This formalization puts the government in a better position to govern the sectors, manage environmental impacts, and direct mining away from ecologically sensitive areas. ==See also==