Gold in the Sewerage

[Big Nugget]

might go to Werribee this weekend.

Is it April 1st?

what a load of $%^^

http://www.news.com.au/technology/e...-in-sewage-waste/story-fnjww010-1227190419564

 

[Billy]

Now that really stinks Big Nugget!!!!

 

[AngerManagement]

Laugh as you may but there is a lot more truth to that, than one might first think.

In India and other major cities for eg Small kids get into the sewers and storm water pipes and scrape up all the silt and mud etc...

Via some less than good practices, then then put it through some processes and extract copper / silver / lead and GOLD. I was surprised at how much precious metal is to be found.

I know that many years ago, the sewerage out let for many hospitals was an interesting place as along with the biological waste; all sorts of metals and chemicals were some times extracted out...

And prior to the special radiation traps ( placed in the toilets and bathrooms etc) in teh facilities that use radiation products to treat people; that the radiation count was high enough to cause alarm...

As one outfall, where it spilled into the river the silt was known to give high readings... Know a few that went crabbing and fishing in that area.. No flat-head or crabs for me.

So the fact is that the Truth, can be stranger than fiction.....

 

[Metamorphic]

They dont mention if there talking about 'Native' (natural) gold or simply referring to 'Jewelry' (scrap) gold.....or perhaps even a combination of both?

If its natural gold, then i can understand the possibility of it travelling large distances in storm water, as it would in a river, however one would think that this is only most likely to occur in gold bearing areas where the geology is conducive to gold formation as such.

This to me would be the only logical conclusion as I dont think many would be prone to throwing nuggets down the crapper, but i can understand jewelry being lost in this manner. You know, the old gold bracelet snagging on a dag!

Its just a bit vague in detailed content and statements like

two kilograms of gold from every metric tonne of ash left after burning sludge.

raises a red flag, but who am I to stand in the way of scientific research.

Most other metals...yes! but natural gold is a very rare commodity at the best of times.

Interesting anyway......Hey maybe this would entail a completely new classification of gold type. 'Pooluvial' Lol 8)

Sorry

 

[nuggetino]

So how much sludge must one burn for a metric tonne of ash? Must be a shit load

 

[silver]

If it was found under the Vatican, instead of yelling EUREEKA , you could just scream "HOLEY CRAP".
.
Might even find a silver spoon(ha).

 

[Jaros]

Very Good silver: Haa,haaa,haaaa,haaaaa,haaaaaa.
Jaros :lol: :lol: :lol: 8.( 8.( 8.( 8.(

 

[jimnyjerry]

Gold could be from what people are drinking
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goldschläger

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_Strike_(drink)

or eating
http://www.bitrebels.com/lifestyle/luxurious-life-10-foods-drinks-made-with-real-gold/

 

[Tige]

Pooluvial lmao !! thats a ripper metamorphic

 

[Tathradj]

Best laugh I have had since "Fuggets" ROFLMAS

 

[Metamorphic]

Gold could be from what people are drinking
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goldschläger

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_Strike_(drink)

or eating
http://www.bitrebels.com/lifestyle/luxurious-life-10-foods-drinks-made-with-real-gold/

Hehe....could be growing on trees or even falling from the sky!

http://www.csiro.au/Portals/Media/Gilding-the-gum-tree-scientists-strike-gold-in-leaves.aspx

 

[gcause]

No its not jewelery being flushed.

Like the article mentioned there is one in Japan, I saw this one in a more detailed article ages ago, it is collecting "pooluvial" gold from a gold bearing reef that is shedding into the really old sewerage system they have. They process the crap and then burn off the rest and then run the ashes through large sluices to capture it. They only started doing this in recent years after one worker found a gold nugget amongst the crap.

Given some countries are still using sewerage systems that were laid down by the romans during their empire it make sense that some of that has to be crossing gold bearing quartz reefs.

 

[Metamorphic]

The shedding of gold is a process that takes millions of years of weathering and erosion....500 years is but a mere pittance!

I dont think the Romans cut through gold bearing reefs saying to each other, "Oh look, isnt that pretty".

Sure, maybe the odd nugget or so has found its way into the sewerage as this is highly likely, but i cant see it being a plausible mining operation since it has only been in existence since the dawn of man......a very short time in the scale of geological creation.

Im just saying, the shedding of gold from hard quartz stone is not something that takes place on a daily basis.

The sewers are hard lined, they are not eroding soils and rock as water travels, like a river would. Anything found in them would have been washed into them by rainfalls from surrounding slopes passing into the storm water over a very short timeframe of the big picture.

I dont think this process would give way to a long term viable mining operation as some suggest.

Its propoganda and tall story telling which has long surrounded gold.....a few nuggets found suddenly turns from just that, into riches beyond ones dreams as the story travels from pub to pub, newspaper to newspaper.

Just my take on it.

 

[SWright]

G'day all

This is relatively old. Geologists have known about this for a long time. Studies were done in Melbourne when I was at uni and that's going back 40 odd years. Gold actually does dissolve in water and the water for Melbourne comes from gold bearing areas. Even only in very small amounts it still adds up. When gold in water hits carbonaceous matter - in this case sewerage- it changes the chemical nature of the water meaning that gold can no longer remain in solution and it combines with the carbon material. This is called a redox reaction and it is the basis of a lot of geological reactions that make ore bodies. The trouble is that while there is significant gold the process for extracting it is currently not economic.

araluen

 

[shivan]

Part of one of our UNI trips was to go to Armidale sewage treatment facility. One of the bigger factors that required long term monitoring was the build up of heavy metals, due to the use of sewage sludge and water on the farm. They are more worried about the toxic ones but from memory a study had showed a high concentration of Au among the metals.

 

[Heatho]

I was thinking also there must be Gold particles in the plants and animals we eat and water we drink, fish can have plenty of Mercury and other heavy metals in them.

 

[golddiggerart]

Makes you wonder how many people read the articles and actually go and Pan the Crap?