UBC Okanagan researcher helps develop cheaper and faster bioreactors

Researchers at the Canadian University of British Columbia (UBC) have isolated organisms that cause acid-rock drainage in mining operations.

Small-scale or artisanal mining is responsible for producing around 400 tonnes of gold a year worldwide. It supports 160 million people, including about 16 million who are directly involved in mining. But because most small-scale miners rely on mercury to extract gold (big mining companies no longer use mercury), the waste runoffs from the mines end up polluting the air and nearby waterways.