Artisan gold mining, Mongolia

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In places along the Ongi River in the central Mongolian province of Ovorhangay, miners live in ger (yurt) communties on top of mining waste piles. They dig 15-meter deep pits to reach richer waste rock below, creating their own waste rock piles. Thousands of artisan miners excavate previous mine waste or tailings for gold dust and nuggets. Countrywide, Mongolia is experiencing a gold rush. Up to 300,000 artisan or "ninja" gold miners are using placer techniques to extract gold from river drainages throughout the country.

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Size: 5120px × 3427px
Location: Uyanga,Ovorhangay,Mongolia
Photo credit: © Ted Wood / Aurora Photos / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No

Keywords: artisan, asia, camp, environment, excavation, ger, gold, mining, mongolia, natural, ninja, ongi, ovorhangay, peo, people, pits, resources, river, rock, rush, underground, waste, yurt