Gold is a precious metal that people love. People use it to share happiness and make their moments memorable. There is no doubt that gold is a part of lovely memories, such as wedding or engagement. Females pick their special collection according to the wardrobe. Thus, gold is in everyone’s life, and it becomes a part of special moments.
Gold is famous for its luster (gloss or shine), color, rarity, malleability (property of turning into shapes), conductivity (electrical), ductility (property of turning into thin sheets), and strength. It has great value in the international market because it is not only used for making jewelry, but it is also used in electronic components (computer, mobiles, satellites, etc.), medals, finance, investment, collateral, tooth filling (dentistry), medicines, and dozens of applications.
Gold used for different purposes can either be mined or recycled. You might be wondering why anyone would care whether the gold is recycled or mined. Practically, it does not matter to anyone because the gold looks the same whether it is recycled or mined. However, there are ethical reasons that compel you to choose recycled gold instead of mined gold. People are now moving towards recycled gold, and in the near future, there will be recycled gold everywhere. Today, we are going to have an in-depth look at why recycled gold should be preferred. You will get the answers to your questions, and we will try to solve the queries. Let’s start the discussion.
Before we go any further, we would like to tell you what recycled gold and mined gold is. We will have a look at their definition to understand everything with ease.
The gold that is obtained from the ground through various mining processes and methods is known as mined gold. At first, it is in the form of ores. It is in the raw form after mining, so it has some impurities. After that, it is treated and refined using various standard methods. Finally, you have gold that can be used for multiple purposes.
Recycled gold is the gold obtained from old jewelry, electronic components, and anything that has gold in it. The gold is extracted from various old and useless things. After going through different processes, the gold obtained is 100% pure gold. The gold that is obtained in the first place can be lower than 24K, but it can be made pure by taking out the impurities.
If we closely examine both recycled and mined gold, we cannot find any difference. Both the types are physically the same, so there is no difference in their physical and even chemical properties.
Gold is being mined for centuries, and it is not something new to us. The production of gold is increasing every year because of the immense demand. If we go a few centuries back, we will realize that gold was mined at a low scale, but now, it is about thousands of metric tons. According to a report, the production of gold was 3,300 metric tons. This is a big number that the world produces every year. In 2009, it was about 2,460 metric tons, but this value is increasing year by year because of the huge demand. Thus, the mining of gold is increasing every year.
We have already seen that gold mining is increasing every year, but why should we switch to recycled gold. There are many ethical reasons you should not go for mined gold; let’s have a look at them.
The first thing that gold mining creates is air pollution. Gold mining contributes a lot to polluting the air. There are various processes used in gold mining that are responsible for creating pollution.
The first thing is the machinery that is used in digging the ground. The machinery emits harmful gases and creates pollution. There are big machines used in the digging, and they give off toxic gases that pollute the air. Moreover, the transportation of gold and other materials that are the byproducts or waste of gold mining also use trucks and vehicles. This also contributes to air pollution.
With the help of explosives and heavy machines, the ground is dug. Due to this, many small dust particles mix with the air and pollute it.
Another important thing that common people don’t know is mercury pollution. Gold is mixed with mercury to extract it. Since mercury is a liquid metal, it mixes with gold and creates an amalgam. Because of mercury, the gold from rocks is easily obtained. After mixing, mercury is heated and turned into vapor form, and the gold is left behind. This is mostly used in small-scale gold mining. However, this is very dangerous to health.
Mercury is a toxic substance that affects the health of miners. The body organs are badly affected by mercury. Not only miners, but it also affects others' health in various ways. First, the vapors mix in the air and create air pollution. Due to air, mercury transfers to long distances. So, it is dangerous for the people and animals living in such places. It also pollutes the rivers and ocean.
In various gold mines, the process is carried out through in-efficient and dangerous methods of mining that badly affect the health of the miners. For instance, because of mercury used in the mining process, the miner’s body organs, such as lungs, kidneys, heart, liver, brain, and almost all major organs, are badly affected. This is a serious issue that puts the miners’ health at risk. Even after putting the lives at risk, the poor miners do not get adequate medical facilities and wages. This also creates more death rate, and in the case of mishaps, miners also lose their lives.
Moreover, in many places, the miners are treated badly. This inhumane treatment is unacceptable. Especially in some countries, the gold mines are controlled by rebels and forces that work against the governments. The gold mines are located in the war-zone areas, and the miners are treated like slaves. Further, the gold is used for buying weapons and spreading bloodshed.
All these things point towards the violation of human rights. Therefore, people do not like to buy gold that has a history of bloodshed and mistreatment of miners.
Gold mining also creates water pollution. It badly affects the water resources in the nearby areas. If there are rivers or oceans near the mines, water is affected too much. Mine waste is also dumped into these water resources. The waste contains various harmful compounds and elements that include lead, mercury, arsenic, acids, cyanide, and many other dangerous byproducts. All these things destroy the purity of water and affect marine life. It can also affect the health of people who eat the fishes from these resources or use water for drinking.
Millions of tons are dumped into the water resources. This is a bad practice for mining companies. When the water has such impurities and harmful compounds, the pH of water decreases, and it becomes acidic. Therefore, it is also commonly known as acid mine drainage. Moreover, the waste can also form sulphuric acid after reacting with rocks. Due to its acidic nature, it becomes harmful for everyone, even the swimmers. It has been noticed that a huge amount of water is dumped into water in the past by mining industries in Indonesia, Canada, and some other countries.
Water is also used in gold mining. The ore processing requires water. Nearly 5-30 million gallons of water are used in a gold mine every day, depending on the size of the gold mine and its work. The world is already going through a water crisis, and in the future, there are more to come. Some countries also treat seawater because of the scarcity of potable water. But the use of water in gold mining is substantial. After the use of water, it is a complete waste because it contains various harmful compounds. Thus, it cannot be used for other purposes.
There is a vast area used for gold mining. There are no residential spaces near the mines because it can affect the health of people. However, the local miners live there. There is a huge land covered for this purpose. It pollutes the land and makes it useless for other purposes. Moreover, if there is any forest where gold can be found, the forest is harmed to obtain gold. This unethical mining is affecting the Amazon forest and other lands.
Apart from affecting the land, gold mines also affect the nearby wildlife, such as wildlife in the forest. The harmful waste and mercury in the air affect animals in the area. It creates a negative impact on the ecosystem.
We have discussed the effects of mined gold on the environment and the ecosystem. There is no doubt that mined gold has some negative effects that can harm nature, wildlife, human health, and natural resources. On the other hand, recycling has no negative environmental impact.
Gold is originally obtained from mining, and then it is used for various purposes, such as mobile phone circuit boards, satellites, and jewelry. For instance, there is a mobile phone that has a little gold in its circuit. But the mobile phone has no use, and it is just a scrap. Don’t you think it is better to recycle gold from it? Your answer would probably be Yes. Similarly, there can be many scrap items that have gold in them, and we can recycle that gold and bring that to market. Thus, when we recycle gold, there is no negative effect on the environment, and the need for gold is fulfilled.
People also have old jewelry that they don’t use or any scrap jewelry that has any defect or problem, so the gold in it can be recycled. Recycling saves nature, and there is nothing that is harmed when the gold is recycled. It does not have any physical or chemical difference; however, it is a better option because it does not harm anything in any way.
People care for nature and want sustainability in the environment. We have already seen how gold demand is increasing, and the industry is mining more gold every year. With the increase in demand, the industries want to discover more mines and gold-rich places. This will again create environmental hazards, pollution, waste and affect wildlife and human life in many ways. Thus, we should move to an alternative to gold mining, which is recycled gold.
There is no doubt that the recycling of gold is not affecting gold mining too much. It is because people are not aware of the problems of gold mining, and they do not care much about it. But people who care about the environment and its sustainability are shifting towards recycled gold. This is increasing day by day, and recycled gold seems to be the future.
You might have heard about conflict-free diamonds. No one knew about it a few decades ago, but now everyone wants to buy conflict-free diamonds only. It is because of the harmful effects of the blood/conflict diamonds. Similarly, people will definitely realize the importance of recycled gold sooner or later.
Moreover, everyone has to contribute a little. If people are buying recycled gold, they are doing something better. They are thinking about the environment. They are playing their role in making this planet a better place for future generations.
No, recycling is not limited to gold. The other metals should also be recycled, such as platinum, copper, and silver. Similar to gold mining, there are environmental problems with the mining of other metals. The main reason to switch to recycling is to preserve nature and its resources. We need to make this planet a better place, and it is the responsibility of every person.
We have discussed gold recycling and why you should go for it instead of mined gold. Due to the adverse and devastating effects of gold mining, it is better to shift towards recycled gold. This will reduce the pollution and harmful effects to the environment. People can prefer recycled jewelry because there is no physical or chemical difference between the two, but when you buy recycled gold, you play your role to save the environment.
At Vistley, we encourage our customers and readers to buy recycled gold. For more information and details, feel free to email us at info@vistley.com.