Deadly truth behind gold mining


A miner drizzles mercury into the ground to help separate gold dust from mud along the Maroni River in Suriname. — ©2023 The New York Times Company

JEOVANE de Jesus Aguiar was knee-deep in mud in the 100m gash he had cut into the Amazon rainforest, filtering brown water out of a pan, when he found the small, shiny flake he was looking for: a mixture of gold and mercury.

Aguiar had drizzled liquid mercury into the ground in his makeshift gold mine on the eastern edge of the small South American nation of Suriname, just as he had every few days.

Play, subscribe and stand a chance to win prizes worth over RM39,000! T&C applies.

Monthly Plan

RM 13.90/month

RM 11.12/month

Billed as RM 11.12 for the 1st month, RM 13.90 thereafter.

Best Value

Annual Plan

RM 12.33/month

RM 9.87/month

Billed as RM 118.40 for the 1st year, RM 148 thereafter.

Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel for breaking news alerts and key updates!
starextra

Next In Focus

Back to coal as conflict chokes gas supply
The pipeline that arms cartels
Behind Germany’s far-right surge
Big Tech’s military bet is paying off
The winter that killed the oyster renaissance
Sinaloa warms to US strikes
A pub crawl, but hold the booze
Congo’s race to save its past
Tears and triumph at the border
Copy, paste and retaliate

Others Also Read