Health Impact Assessment of Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining Area in Myanmar, Mandalay Region: Preliminary Research

Increasing artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) in developing countries has raised health concerns in mining communities. A preliminary health survey was conducted in Thabeikkyin Township, Mandalay Region, Myanmar, in February 2020 to assess the health conditions of an ASGM community. Respiratory function and other clinical assessments were evaluated in miners and non-miners, and participants’ hair was analyzed for heavy metals. Respiratory function of miners was similar to that of non-miners. However, miners’ respiratory function declined with longer mining activity duration. In total, 3 out of 18 miners showed neurological signs and symptoms of chronic mercury intoxication. The median concentration of the hair mercury was significantly higher in miners than non-miners (P = 0.01), and 9 out of 18 miners and 2 out of 11 non-miners showed the warning level of mercury. We found that, despite an association between declining respiratory function and length of time mining, only a minority of miners showed clinical features of chronic mercury intoxication. Further clinical surveys with a larger sample size are necessary to determine the broader health status of this community. In addition, clinical indicators such as pulmonary function tests are recommended as additional criteria for the diagnosis of mercury intoxication.

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MERCURY USE IN ARTISANAL SMALL-SCALE GOLD MINING IN ZIMBABWE: DISABILTY-ADJUSTED LIFE YEARS (DALYS) OF CHRONIC MERCURY INTOXICATION

ISEE Conference Abstracts ◽

10.1289/isee.2011.01439 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 2011 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Nadine Steckling ◽

Stephan Bose-O’Reilly ◽

Paulo Pinheiro ◽

Dietrich Plaß ◽

Dennis Shoko ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gold Mining ◽

Small Scale ◽

Life Years ◽

Mercury Intoxication ◽

Chronic Mercury Intoxication

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The burden of chronic mercury intoxication in artisanal small-scale gold mining in Zimbabwe: data availability and preliminary estimates

Environmental Health ◽

10.1186/1476-069x-13-111 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 13 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

Nadine Steckling ◽

Stephan Bose-O’Reilly ◽

Paulo Pinheiro ◽

Dietrich Plass ◽

Dennis Shoko ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gold Mining ◽

Data Availability ◽

Small Scale ◽

Mercury Intoxication ◽

Chronic Mercury Intoxication

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Chronic Effect Analysis of Mercury Exposure on Communities Around Small Scale Gold Mining in Indonesia Using Human Biomonitoring (HBM) Method

E3S Web of Conferences ◽

10.1051/e3sconf/202014804001 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 148 ◽

pp. 04001

Author(s):

Haryo Mubiarto ◽

Herto Dwi Ariesyady ◽

Siska Widya Dewi Kusumah ◽

Juli Soemirat

Keyword(s):

Gold Mining ◽

Daily Intake ◽

Human Biomonitoring ◽

Mercury Exposure ◽

Small Scale ◽

Mining Activities ◽

Chronic Effect ◽

Hair Mercury ◽

Tolerable Weekly Intake ◽

Mercury Intoxication

In general, small-scale gold mining activities that are spread throughout Indonesia practicing amalgamation technique. The amalgamation process in the mining activities can result in environmental degradation due to tailing waste containing mercury that are discharged into the environment and will distributed and bioaccumulated through food chain. Mercury exposure to human can give a chronic effect. Measuring mercury concentration in biomarkers such as nail and hair is a method to indicate the mercury poisoning level. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to analyze mercury concentrations in nail and hair as chronic exposure biomarkers. Besides, we also conducted Human Biomonitoring (HBM) analysis to assess mercury intoxication in the communities. Moreover, we analyzed mercury concentrations in water, rice, fish, and food crops samples to understand their association with mercury concentrations in nail and hair through a Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intake (PTWI) analysis. This research was conducted in 4 districts in Indonesia which has a significant number of small-scale gold mining activities. The results showed that the maximum concentration of T-Hg in the nail and hair of the workers was 58.48 µg/g and 55.97 µg/g, respectively. Based on HBM analysis, in several districts, more than 60% of the workers has been intoxicated by mercury. Meanwhile, Average Daily Intake (ADI) and PTWI were significantly correlated with concentration mercury in the nail and hair. Mercury concentrations in worker’s hair was significantly correlated with working experience. We identified that the age and residence duration were the major predictor of concentration mercury in nail and hair, respectively.

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The Mt. Diwata study on the Philippines 1999 — assessing mercury intoxication of the population by small scale gold mining

The Science of The Total Environment ◽

10.1016/s0048-9697(00)00806-8 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 267 (1-3) ◽

pp. 151-168 ◽

Cited By ~ 112

Author(s):

G Drasch ◽

S Böse-O'Reilly ◽

C Beinhoff ◽

G Roider ◽

S Maydl

Keyword(s):

Gold Mining ◽

The Philippines ◽

Small Scale ◽

Mercury Intoxication

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Mercury Levels in Human Hair and Farmed Fish near Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining Communities in the Madre de Dios River Basin, Peru

10.20944/preprints201703.0076.v1 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Aubrey L. Langeland ◽

Rebecca D. Hardin ◽

Richard L. Neitzel

Keyword(s):

River Basin ◽

Gold Mining ◽

Total Mercury ◽

Mercury Level ◽

Mercury Exposure ◽

Small Scale ◽

Farmed Fish ◽

Mining Communities ◽

Hair Mercury ◽

Madre De Dios

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) has been an important source of income for communities in the Madre de Dios River Basin in Peru for hundreds of years. However, in recent decades, the scale of ASGM activities in the region has increased dramatically, and exposures to a variety of occupational and environmental hazards related to ASGM, including mercury, are becoming more widespread. The aims of our study were to: (1) examine patterns in the total hair mercury level of human participants in several communities in the region and compare these results to the 2.2 µg/g total hair mercury level equivalent to the World Health Organization (WHO) Expert Committee of Food Additives (JECFA)’s Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intake (PTWI); and (2), to measure the mercury levels of paco (Piaractus brachypomus) fish raised in local aquaculture ponds, in order to compare these levels to the EPA Fish Tissue Residue Criterion of 0.3 µg Hg/g fish (wet weight). We collected hair samples from 80 participants in four communities (one control and three where ASGM activities occurred) in the region, and collected 111 samples from fish raised in 24 local aquaculture farms. We then analyzed the samples for total mercury. Total mercury levels in hair were statistically significantly higher in the mining communities than in the control community, and increased with increasing distance away from the Madre de Dios headwaters (as the crow flies), did not differ by sex, and frequently exceeded the reference level. Regression analyses indicated that higher hair mercury levels were associated with residence in ASGM communities. The analysis of paco fish samples found no samples that exceeded the EPA tissue residue criterion. Collectively, these results align with other recent studies showing that ASGM activities are associated with elevated human mercury exposure. The fish farmed through the relatively new process of aquaculture in ASGM areas appeared to have little potential to contribute to human mercury exposure. More research is needed on human health risks associated with ASGM to discern occupational, residential, and nutritional exposure, especially through tracking temporal changes in mercury levels as fish ponds age, and assessing levels in different farmed fish species. Additionally, research is needed to definitively determine that elevated mercury levels in humans and fish result from the elemental mercury from mining, rather than from a different source, such as the mercury released from soil erosion during deforestation events from mining or other activities.

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