Mercury-Free Mining
Most of the more than 20 million gold miners who engage in small-scale gold mining in developing countries (ASGM=Artisanal small-scale gold mining) use mercury, a persistent and potent neurotoxin. These miners produce about 20% of the world's gold. In doing so, they contaminate the environment with more than 3,800 kg of mercury every day. The workers poison themselves by inhaling mercury vapors and coming into contact with mercury, and they poison their environment as mercury enters rivers and ocean currents during processing, while microparticles are dispersed by winds through mercury vapors.
Global environmental pollution from mercury is one of the major threats facing our society today. This applies to every community worldwide, as mercury never transitions into a non-toxic state. Methylmercury is a highly potent neurotoxin that affects the function and development of the central and peripheral nervous systems in both humans and animals. Exposure to mercury is particularly dangerous for children as well as for pregnant and breastfeeding women, because mercury exerts its most harmful effects during the early stages of development.
Mercury has long played an important, if not essential, role in gold extraction. However, while industrial gold mining no longer relies on the use of mercury, artisanal and small-scale gold miners (ASGM) remain dependent on it because they lack less harmful, more cost-effective, and more efficient alternatives. For thousands of years, mercury has been indispensable to them for binding gold using the mining methods employed there. In this process, liquid mercury is added to ore concentrates, where it then binds with the tiny gold particles. This "amalgam," which resembles putty, is formed into pellets that are heated by the workers, causing the potent neurotoxin to evaporate into the atmosphere, leaving behind the concentrated gold. According to current estimates, the work of more than 20 million ASGM in developing countries releases more than 1,400 tons of toxic mercury into the environment every year.
The majority of these gold miners have no other choice but to use this toxic substance to earn their livelihood. Efforts by governments and international institutions to work toward ending the use of mercury in ASGM have failed to bring about a solution to the problem.
GOLDROP processor - pioneering system for mercury-free gold recovery
With the new "GOLDROP" pilot plant, gold extraction without mercury is possible.
At JCK LAS VEGAS, Mercury Free Mining presented the new Goldrop process. Using a small pump powered by a portable solar panel and water, Goldrop enables gold prospectors to separate gold from sand entirely without mercury. The goal in developing GOLDROP was to create a system that is low-cost and can be manufactured with simple means.
Support the Mercury Free Mining Project
Every donation amount is welcome. For donations of $100 or more, you will be listed as a donor on the Mercury Free Mining website. Sign up via https://www.mercuryfreemining.org or contact us via sponsor@mercuryfreeming.org.
For companies, we recommend participating as a Premium Sponsor (from $2,500 ~ €2,400) or as a Sponsor (from $1,000 ~ €950). As a Premium Sponsor or Sponsor, you will have the opportunity to promote yourself using the Mercury Free Mining logo. You will receive the logo for your online presence, as well as information cards and stickers for in-person events.
Bernd Wolf supports the Mercury Free Mining Project Germany in German-speaking countries. We are convinced that it is of enormous importance for the jewelry industry to mine gold in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner.
Toby Pomeroy
Toby Pomeroy represents a shift in the social and environmental responsibility of the jewelry industry. He is an award-winning designer, goldsmith, and committed environmentalist who has been designing jewelry in his Oregon goldsmith studio since 1968. His forged jewelry pieces are characterized by their elegant simplicity, perfect craftsmanship, and high level of comfort.
Toby Pomeroy is an innovator in the jewelry industry. He initiated the global introduction of responsible mining practices by advocating for transparent, ethical supply chains. This provides manufacturers with a path where jewelry is preferably made from materials whose journey is sustainable from extraction to processing. Toby Pomeroy represents a shift in the social and environmental responsibility of the jewelry industry.
Since 2010, Toby Pomeroy has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM). This international non-governmental organization (NGO) aims to transform artisanal and small-scale mining into a socially productive and environmentally sound activity. This is intended to improve the quality of life for up to 100 million marginalized artisanal miners, their families, and communities. In 2017, he founded Mercury Free Mining, a non-profit organization dedicated to discovering a safe and effective alternative to mercury. It has launched a challenge prize with the goal of enabling more than 20 million subsistence-scale gold miners to mine safely, cleanly, and profitably without poisoning themselves or damaging the environment.
"We can protect and restore our environment and work towards ensuring that all people are valued through sustainable, safe, and meaningful living conditions."
Bernd Wolf and Toby Pomeroy
Bernd Wolf and Toby Pomeroy met in 2004 as neighboring exhibitors at JCK Las Vegas. A close bond and friendship developed between the jewelry designers. Bernd Wolf is a member of the Chairman’s Circle and advocates for the initiative in the German-speaking region.
At the JCK fair in Las Vegas, Bernd Wolf was honored by Toby Pomeroy for his services to Mercury Free Mining with a traditional batea (gold pan) made of laurel wood.
