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Let's dig some gold
in environmentally sustainable way
Project Background
Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM)–gold mining with limited capital investment and production–becomes a big concern especially in Indonesia as it supports 1 million people’s livelihoods.
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2021/a/a1/T--UGM_Indonesia--img--home-figure-2.png)
ASGM Practices Cause
Environmental Issues
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2021/6/67/T--UGM_Indonesia--img--home-figure-3.png)
Cyanide is widely utilized by ASGM as a leaching agent in the hydrometallurgical process. However, there are many occurrences of cyanide leakage and improper waste treatment within the ASGM practices.
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2021/6/6f/T--UGM_Indonesia--img--home-figure-4.png)
In addition, the existing cyanide waste treatment still takes more than 1 month. Moreover, the limited supply of adequate resources involved in ASGM perplexes people to achieve a proper and efficient cyanide waste treatment.
???
Is there any solution to this problem
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2021/d/d8/T--UGM_Indonesia--img--home-figure-5.png)
Pyrometallurgy
Pyrometallurgy as an alternative gold extraction method is unsuitable for ASGM as it needs huge energy sources for the 600oC-heating process. Besides, this process is also unsafe for non-trained workers from local societies.
Therefore, another approach for gold extraction is needed to achieve a proper implementation among ASGM.
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2021/4/4b/T--UGM_Indonesia--img--home-figure-5-outro.png)
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2021/0/0d/T--UGM_Indonesia--img--home-figure-6-intro.png)
So, here's our project idea
A bacterium Chromobacterium violaceum has been found to produce cyanide as well as degrade it faster through enzymatic reaction.
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2021/8/87/T--UGM_Indonesia--img--home-background-6-intro.png)
Meet this friendly bacteria
Therefore, another approach for gold extraction is needed to achieve a proper implementation among ASGM.
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2021/9/93/T--UGM_Indonesia--img--home-figure-6-outro.png)
Coming with those flows, we conducted a project based on a synthetic biology approach entitled Auviola!
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2021/0/0f/T--UGM_Indonesia--img--home-logo-7.png)
a cyanide-regulating system for gold bioleaching and waste treatment towards sustainable non-mercury gold processing
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2021/a/a8/T--UGM_Indonesia--img--home-frame-7.png)
Through this project, we intended to engineer C. violaceum into an on-off system that may produce optimized amounts of cyanide and subsequently degrade it.
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2021/6/6a/T--UGM_Indonesia--img--home-figure-7.png)
Furthermore, a bioreactor has been designed to provide an environmentally friendly gold bioleaching model to be applied by ASGM.
Through this project, we aimed to develop a new strategy for the better gold bioleaching process and cyanide waste treatment. Let's contribute to create a sustainable non-mercury gold processing!