Selin Launches NSF Project on Mercury in Artisanal Mining

Henrik Selin is part of a National Science Foundation-funded project on “Mercury Pollution and Human-Technical-Environmental Interactions in Artisanal Mining.”

Selin is working on the project with a team including Noelle Selin, Steven Barrett and Ruth Goldstein. The project applies a social, technical and environmental systems perspective to analyze mercury use and human well-being with a focus on artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM). Mercury is an environmental pollutant that can travel far from its emission source, where it can damage human health and the environment. ASGM is estimated to be the largest source of global mercury emissions, and occurs in the context of power, race and gender dynamics in mining communities. A better understanding of the multiple, interacting factors that influence mercury use in ASGM will help advance knowledge about the atmospheric mercury system and support governance efforts to address environmental and human health risks from mercury pollution. The project will develop and evaluate a new theoretical framework that can be employed to analyze interactions of people, technologies and the environment that can contribute to sustainability transitions. The project’s broader impact will be to inform initiatives to mitigate environmental and social harms of ASGM activities, including those under the global Minamata Convention on Mercury. Project participants will engage with organizations, NGOs, those affected by mercury contamination in communities and other experts to translate findings to practical action.