A Bibliometric Analysis of the Scientific Research on Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining

Fernando Morante-Carballo, Néstor Montalván-Burbano, Maribel Aguilar-Aguilar and Paúl Carrión-Mero
Additional contact information
Fernando Morante-Carballo: Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Matemáticas (FCNM), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil 09015863, Ecuador
Maribel Aguilar-Aguilar: Centro de Investigaciones y Proyectos Aplicados a las Ciencias de la Tierra (CIPAT), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil 09015863, Ecuador
Paúl Carrión-Mero: Centro de Investigaciones y Proyectos Aplicados a las Ciencias de la Tierra (CIPAT), ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil 09015863, Ecuador

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 13, 1-29

Abstract: Mineral resource exploitation is one of the activities that contribute to economic growth and the development of society. Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) is one of these activities. Unfortunately, there is no clear consensus to define ASM. However, its importance is relevant in that it represents, in some cases, the only employment alternative for millions of people, although it also significantly impacts the environment. This work aims to investigate the scientific information related to ASM through a bibliometric analysis and, in addition, to define the new lines that are tending to this field. The study comprises three phases of work: (i) data collection, (ii) data processing and software selection, and (iii) data interpretation. The results reflect that the study on ASM developed intensively from 2010 to the present. In general terms, the research addressed focuses on four interrelated lines: (i) social conditioning factors of ASM, (ii) environmental impacts generated by ASM, (iii) mercury contamination and its implication on health and the environment, and (iv) ASM as a livelihood. The work also defines that geotourism in artisanal mining areas is a significant trend of the last decade, explicitly focusing on the conservation and use of the geological and mining heritage and, in addition, the promotion of sustainable development of ASM.

Keywords: mining; artisanal mining; small-scale mining; environment; bibliometric analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/13/8156/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/13/8156/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:13:p:8156-:d:854813

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().