Anthropogenic Disturbance by Domestic Extraction of Gold Mining in Mongolia

Abstract

 Mining, husbandry, and construction activities are consuming a large amount of natural resources. These processes have multiple impacts on the environment, including the excavation of large areas. This research focuses on gold mining in Mongolia, and aims (1) to identify the gold mining activities and allocated them on a map, and (2) to quantify the material flows related to gold mining. Statistical datasets, sourced by the Mineral Resources of Mongolia and the National Statistical Office of Mongolia, were used to account for domestic extraction. Two methods were used for mapping mining activities: firstly, the degraded areas were identified through a geographic information system (GIS) software; secondly, the domestic extraction of gold mining was estimated by the standardized method of material flow accounting. Results indicate the Mongolian gold mining activities exploited 9,812 ha of land across 18 different provinces. In addition, 745,300 m³ of soil was excavated to produce 132 tons of gold in 2007-2017. Particularly, during this period 100.8 tonnes of green gold was extracted which means the gold extraction that does not include any chemical process and just washing soil to obtain gold. "Green Gold" is recognized as less environmental impact by the European market.

 This study will be beneficial to the Mongolian government to better understand the environmental burden related to the gold mining activities in the country.