Measurements of mercury and gold concentrations in samples from tailing dams which contaminated by Small Scale Mining, using PGAA and INAA

Hatsukawa, Yuichi; Osawa, Takahito  ; Appel, P. W. U.*; Arcilla, C.*; Perez, E.*

Small scale gold mining is widely seen in many places in the world. During gold extract processing, large amount of mercury was released in the environment. Extrapolated to the whole country 200 to 500 tons of mercury is released to the environment every year. Most of the mercury will end in the mangrove swamps fringing the coast line. The mangrove swamps serve as hatching grounds for fish and shellfish the main source of proteins for the Filipinos. Very high concentrations of mercury have been found in water which was used for watering rice paddies. In this study, we developed determination of mercury and gold in the crushed rock mines nondestructively using PGAA and INAA. Also based on the concentration of gold and mercury in tailings, we will optimize conditions of the state battery method. Observed mercury and gold concentrations in tailings are 2.5-393 ppm, 1-3.9 ppm, respectively. Based on these results, we will optimize the conditions of the state battery method for mercury clean up project.