Mercury pollution threatens the health of millions of people around the world.

One of the most dangerous and widespread sources of mercury pollution is due to artisanal and small scale gold mining, where mercury metal is used intentionally to extract gold from ore.

The resulting mercury-gold amalgam is then burned to vaporise the mercury and isolate the gold. Excess mercury in tailings is typically dumped directly into waterways used for drinking and irrigation.

Approximately 15 million people, including children, participate in this practice globally.

Cost-effective and operationally simple technologies are therefore required to address this pollution crisis.

Our lab at Flinders University has invented inexpensive materials—made entirely from industrial waste—that are effective in capturing the type of mercury pollution encountered in artisanal gold mines. 

This lecture will discuss the science behind this technology and field trials aimed to protect the environment and human health.

Flinders Investigators is a free public lecture series bringing the University's world-leading research to the wider community.

Please RSVP online