Gold mining and land degradation during development decades in Ethiopia: practices, impacts, and urgency for sustainable land restoration

Gold mining has been practiced in Ethiopia for centuries in placer deposits along the greenstone belts. A systematic search of Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar yielded 37 studies that met the inclusion criteria and were included in the final synthesis. In addition, lived experience in gold-mining practices, their environmental impacts, and the status of restoration efforts in the northern green belt were integrated with the literature evidence. The study revealed that artisanal gold miners relied on rudimentary tools such as shovels and pans to extract gold from streambeds, farmlands, and hillsides. The large-scale gold miners also utilized heavy machinery and toxic chemicals to process gold-bearing ores. These mining practices caused a significant decline in woody species, slope failures, gully erosion, and acid drainage along abandoned mining areas. Moreover, local aesthetic, ecological, and economic values of the mined landscapes diminished over time. Despite the visible impacts of the gold rush, restoration initiatives at abandoned mining sites remained minimal, and the enforcement of existing regulations were too weak. To conclude, the growing illegal and lawless gold mining practices were critically degrading the multifunctional landscapes. The findings underscore the urgent need for the adoption of environmentally friendly technologies such as mercury-free gold extraction methods, improved tailings management, and community-led agroforestry-based reclamation alongside strengthened institutional oversight and the enforcement of post-mining land restoration strategies to ensure sustainable land uses.