(3 Minutes Read)
Small-time gold miners and rat miners are now enthused more than ever before because of the vaulting values of gold. Due to geopolitical tensions and the unrest surrounding US President Donald Trump’s trade policy, the gold price has risen to record highs.
Senegal has several hopeful gold miners, particularly in the village of Bantako, deep in the south-east of Senegal, frequented by gold seekers wanting to become rich overnight. Not even a fraction of them have found things going as people who hit the jackpot are very few. Yet, there is no dearth of people looking for the near impossible to happen.
Small-time gold miners and rat miners are now enthused more than ever before because of the vaulting values of gold. Due to geopolitical tensions and the unrest surrounding US President Donald Trump’s trade policy, the gold price has risen to record highs. But despite the skyrocketing price, these miners are not getting rich, often being paid only a fraction of the world market price by traders.
But gold extraction in the region is based on a dangerous practice. Miners are poisoning the land by using mercury to bind the small gold pieces together. After it has bonded to the pieces, it’s taken to a dealer who burns the mercury off with a blowtorch. What remains is a shiny lump of gold.
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The environmental impact has been enormous. Farmer and environmental activist, Doudou Drama, says they can no longer grow crops because the soil is contaminated. Despite the health concerns, as long as there’s no good alternative to gold extraction, the miners say they will not stop using it. The Senegalese government has been trying for years to ban the use of mercury, without success.
