Study finds food gardens are at risk.
For 140 years, gold mines in Johannesburg, South Africa, have been leaking wastewater contaminated with heavy metals. The acid mine drainage from Johannesburg’s estimated 278 abandoned mines and 200 mine dumps includes uranium , toxic arsenic, copper, cobalt, nickel, lead and zinc.
In very mild doses, exposure to the heavy metals in acid mine drainage can cause dehydration and abdominal pain. In cases of serious exposure, birth defects, brain damage, cancer and miscarriages can result. We ran a variety of tests using different approaches, to see whether microbes or microscopic organisms, which can be bacteria, viruses or fungi, had been adversely affected by acid mine drainage.
In the last 20 years, government has offered some incentives to mining companies to pump away the acid mine drainage so that it is not continuously leaking into Soweto’s rivers and streams.However, our study found that this is simply not enough. The residents to the north of Soweto’s Dobsonville, Diepkloof and Meadowlands neighbourhoods live almost on top of mine dumps and they are most affected.
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Gold Mine Pollution Is Poisoning Soweto's Water and SoilAnalysis - For 140 years, gold mines in Johannesburg, South Africa have been leaking wastewater contaminated with heavy metals. The acid mine drainage from Johannesburg's estimated 278 abandoned mines and 200 mine dumps includes uranium (a radioactive metal), toxic arsenic, copper, cobalt, nickel, lead and zinc.
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