Abstract
Small scale or artisan gold mining is predominant in the developing countries. The process includes amalgamation with gold and metallic mercury and burning the amalgam to release mercury vapor to the ambient air. This results in not only excessive exposure of the workers engaged but also contamination of ambient air and rivers. Mercury thus released is methylated in the water and accumulated in some kinds of fish through the food chain. Health effects of residents who depend on the contaminated fish as well as exposed workers are concerned. In this report artisan gold mining operating all over the world are described and related problems including environmental pollution and the destruction of the environment are discussed.
