Towards Sustainable Mining: Evaluating Pyrometallurgy as a Green Alternative in Gold Ore Processing

Environmental pollution by mercury in small-scale gold mining in Kulon Progo has occurred. Amalgamation has been carried out since 1997. It caused many impacts to the environment and human health. It contaminated soil and water in Kalirejo, Kulon Progo. Referring to Minamata Convention through Law Number 11 of 2017, Indonesia through Technology Assessment and Application Agency was collaborating with United Nations Development Program for the development of a pilot plant pyrometallurgy in Kulon Progo. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of pyrometallurgy methods. The research method was assessment research. This research used purposive sampling to collect data and the weighting method to process questionnaire data. Based on the research, pyrometallurgy was still not practical due to its high operational costs. On the other hand, it was environmentally friendly. The heavy metals and pH of wastewater from the scrubber of the arc furnace and roasting met the quality standards. It was possible to switch to pyrometallurgy with a society approval level of 64%..