Gold mining relies heavily on the use of toxic chemicals and produces enormous amounts of waste. See Source: Tons of waste produced from gold mining – globally, this year
Every 42 seconds, gold mining produces the weight of the Eiffel Tower in waste.
Acid mine drainage is probably the biggest environmental concern associated with gold-mining. Acid mine drainage is outflow of acidic water from a mining site which forms from the gold mining process which exposes the sulfides to water and air. At a gold mine, the gold ore can be rich in sulfide minerals. Together they react to form sulfuric acid and if this substance run off into lakes, rivers and streams, it will pose serious risks for populations of fish and other aquatic organisms. Many impacted streams have a pH of 4 or lower, similar to battery acid. Also, acid mine drainage is especially harmful because it can occur long after mining has ended.
To extract gold from the surrounding rocks, heat and chemicals are used. Some of these are dangerous pollutants such as cyanide. The waste products from gold mining are called tailings. Dust from open mines fills the air and can cause illness when it’s breathed by miners or local people. If tailings are left out in the open air, they can generate dust full of chemicals such as cadmium and arsenic. The extraction of gold involves heating it to extreme temperatures, which releases pollutants such as nitrogen and sulfur dioxide into the air. The impacts of gold mining affect three main elements in the environment: water, atmosphere, and soil (Wahab et al. 2012).
When discussing gold mining, it is important to bring up artisanal gold mining because the negative effects of this type of gold mining are greater than non-artsinal gold mining. About 20% of the world’s gold is produced by the artisanal and small-scale gold mining sector (EPA). This sector is also responsible for the largest releases of mercury to the environment of any sector globally. Artisanal mining refers to small scale mining activities that uses basic and traditional methods to extract and process minerals and metals on a small scale. The main locations of artisinal gold mining are Russia, Asia, Africa, and South America. On a regional scale, artisanal gold mining can contribute to over 50% of the total mercury anthropogenic emissions (Lacerda 2002). It wasn’t until the 1980s when artisanal gold mining was looked at as a source of mercury emissions. In many gold mining areas, Mercury emissions are estimated using gold production figures and emission factors, so the data showing that artisanal gold mining leads to mercury emissions isn’t conclusive.
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