Central Kalimantan To Regulate Gold Miners

Buntok, C Kalimantan, Aug 27 (ANTARA) - The regent of Barito Selatan, Central Kalimantan province will immediately form a team to issue a regulation for gold miners operating at watershed of the area, the regent said. "An integrated team will be deployed in effort to manage the gold miners in good order," the Barito Selatan regent HM Farid Yusran said here recently. According to him, the regulation was aimed at protecting the water of Barito river from the pollution of mercury used by the miners to purify the gold. "The impact of using the mercury for gold purification is that it can destroy the aquatic ecosystems and very harmful to human health," Farid said. He said further that human beings who consumed the mercury-contaminated water will suffer from diseases within the period of five to ten years. The mercury-contaminated water can cause cancer and lower the indurance against various diceases. Thus, Farid called on various parties to avoid cultivating the gold mining at Barito watershed.