What is artisanal mining and small scale mining versus large scale mining?

An artisanal miner is in effect a subsistence miner, who often undertake the activity of mining gold seasonally – for example crops are planted in the rainy season, and mining is pursued in the dry season. They are not officially employed by a mining company, but rather work independently, mining or panning for gold using their own resources.

Small scale miners are often, but not always, legal operators usually working in collectives of about two to 20 or more people. They have greater structure and organization to their workings than perhaps artisanal miners and often make use of rudimentary processing plants.

Large scale mining is typically very capital intense with substantial investments in plant and infrastructure taking place. Large scale mines typically take several years to build and commission and depending on their size can cost hundreds of millions of dollars. They are often managed by listed companies, and have structured management systems and procedures regarding employee, safety, health environment and community issues.

See also: Facts Artisanal Mining

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