Investigation of Long-Term Roving Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining Activities Using Time-Series Sentinel-1 and Global Surface Water Datasets

Satomi Kimijima, Masayuki Sakakibara and Masahiko Nagai
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Satomi Kimijima: Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, Kyoto 603-8047, Japan
Masayuki Sakakibara: Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, Kyoto 603-8047, Japan
Masahiko Nagai: Graduate School of Science and Technology for Innovation, Yamaguchi University, Ube 755-8611, Japan

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 9, 1-13

Abstract: Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is a significant source of gold production globally despite the sector being informal and illegal. The rapid increase in the number of roving mining camps has negatively impacted the surrounding environment; however, the formation and transformation of roving mining camps have not been well studied. This study investigated the long-term trends and significant hotspots of roving camp-type ASGM (R-C-ASGM) in Katingain Regency, Central Kalimantan Province, Indonesia, from 1988 to 2020 using remotely sensed data, including Sentinel-1 time-series, global surface water (GSW), and world landcover datasets. Results show that several active R-C-ASGM sites existed in the Galangan and Kalanaman areas in 2017/2018. According to the GSW dataset, the Galangan area was estimated to be formed earlier, whereas the Kalanaman areas were recently formed and were associated with the Kalanaman river expansion. Notably, the center of Galangan was still a significant R-C-ASGM hotspot. The findings of this study broaden our understanding of R-C-ASGM transformation and identify significant R-C-ASGM hotspots over a long period. This study contributes to the development of timely and appropriate interventions for strengthening environmental governance.

Keywords: active mining; alluvial mining; artisanal and small-scale gold mining; Indonesia; remote sensing; SAR; surface water occurrence (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)

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