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Indonesia: The Mercury Time Bomb

Linda Pressly visits Indonesia, where mercury is used in the gold mining process, and discovers workers and communities who are showing signs of poisoning.

Up to 20 per cent of the world's gold is produced by informal mining, with millions of people in the developing world relying on it for a living. But the quickest and easiest way to produce gold is by mixing finely ground rock with mercury and burning it off. Linda Pressly visits Indonesia, where mercury is used to produce gold, and discovers workers and communities who are already showing signs of poisoning.

30 minutes

Last on

Sun 22 Sep 201322:30GMT

Broadcasts

  • Fri 20 Sep 201323:30GMT
  • Sat 21 Sep 201311:30GMT
  • Sun 22 Sep 201317:30GMT
  • Sun 22 Sep 201322:30GMT