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Cheng, Y. C., Watari, T., Seccatore, J., Nakajima, K., Nansai, K., & Takaoka, M. (2023). A review of gold production, mercury consumption, and emission in artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM). Resour. Policy, 81, 103370.
Abstract: Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is one of the largest sources of Hg emissions and is critical for addressing the Hg problem. Due to scarce and punctual statistics provided by governments and agencies, there is almost no accurate data on ASGM production, Hg use, and emissions. In this study, we surveyed different ap-proaches to estimate ASGM production and collected data from different sources, including academic papers and technical reports. Globally, 380-870 tonnes of gold is produced by ASGM each year, with a median value of 520 tonnes. The Hg use in the ASGM sector was estimated to be 640-1000 tonnes each year, with a median value of 892 tonnes. Consequently, 248-838 tonnes of Hg are emitted from the ASGM sector each year, with a median value of 615 tonnes. However, significant discrepancies were found in the data calculated using different ap-proaches, particularly in countries where the estimates were large, such as China. To obtain a more accurate picture of global ASGM activities, a general estimation approach combining specific studies of dominant coun-tries is necessary. For better management of ASGM in the future, developing a solid baseline and comprehensive future projection scenarios and establishing international collaboration to construct guidance on ASGM are recommended.
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Pietrobelli, C., Marin, A., & Olivari, J. (2018). Innovation in mining value chains: New evidence from Latin America. Resour. Policy, 58, 1–10.
Abstract: The paper investigates new opportunities for innovation and linkages associated to mining activities in Brazil, Chile and Peru. Three types of opportunities were researched: demand side, supply side and local specificities. The last source of opportunities is key for natural resource related activities. The evidence shows that an increasing demand is introducing important incentives for innovation and local suppliers. Nevertheless, a hierarchical value chain, dominated by few large firms, and poor linkages is blocking the diffusion of innovations and hindering suppliers' development. The emergence of a group of highly innovative suppliers, which were identified in the three countries, is explained mostly by new technological and knowledge opportunities, which are not exploited by large incumbents and open spaces for new entrants. Local specificities are also key in the explanation of local suppliers. It remains a challenge however, how these, most of which were created to satisfy local needs, will move from local to global.
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Reus, L., Pagnoncelli, B., & Armstrong, M. (2019). Better management of production incidents in mining using multistage stochastic optimization. Resour. Policy, 63, 13 pp.
Abstract: Among the many sources of uncertainty in mining are production incidents: these can be strikes, environmental issues, accidents, or any kind of event that disrupts production. In this work, we present a strategic mine planning model that takes into account these types of incidents, as well as random prices. When confronted by production difficulties, mines which have contracts to supply customers have a range of flexibility options including buying on the spot market, or taking material from a stockpile if they have one. Earlier work on this subject was limited in that the optimization could only be carried out for a few stages (up to 5 years) and in that it only analyzed the risk-neutral case. By using decomposition schemes, we are now able to solve large-scale versions of the model efficiently, with a horizon of up to 15 years. We consider decision trees with up to 615 scenarios and implement risk aversion using Conditional Value-at-Risk, thereby detecting its effect on the optimal policy. The results provide a “roadmap” for mine management as to optimal decisions, taking future possibilities into account. We present extensive numerical results using the new sddp.jl library, written in the Julia language, and discuss policy implications of our findings.
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Villena, M., & Greve, F. (2018). On resource depletion and productivity: The case of the Chilean copper industry. Resour. Policy, 59, 553–562.
Abstract: How resource depletion affects productivity is a crucial question for several industries. In fact, several natural resource-exporting countries have seen their productivity levels affected by resource depletion. Nevertheless, usually, it is not clear what the real productivity growth is, without discarding the effects of resource depletion in the production structure. The main aim of the paper is to empirically answer a relevant issue regarding the Chilean copper mining industry, which is, the slowdown of its productivity in the last decade, considering in the analysis the role of resource depletion. In particular, we consider resource depletion to be an exogenous and unpaid force that opposes technological change and hence increases costs through time, capturing in this way some stylized facts of, for example, the mining and fishing industries. The decomposition framework was applied to the Chilean copper mining industry, one of the most important in the world, using data from the period of 1985-2015. The econometric results were robust and pointed to the fact that the productivity fell sharply during the period; however, it did not fall as much as the traditional estimation methods pointed out. Our model showed that as much as 15% of this decline was due to the increase of the resource depletion variable (copper ore grade).
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