Dedi Supriadi swings his hoe into the soil at his aubergine and cucumber farm – land where he once dug for gold in the hamlet of #CitorekKidul in #Indonesia.
The mountainous region is scarred by illegal #GoldMining , where workers carve deep into hillsides and caves and risk their lives in the process.
Tempted by the traces of #gold left behind by a former state-run mine, Aneka Tambang #ANTAM , villagers have turned to small-scale #IllegalMining , driving #deforestation and using #toxic chemicals like #mercury and #cyanide that #pollute water and kill #wildlife.
Critics and $environmentalists have called for stricter measures to stop the practice and encourage a return to traditional and less destructive ways of life like #farming.
A police crackdown and signs of change, such as several #miners recently switching to farming, have raised hopes of a possible turning point in the effort.
https://www.eco-business.com/news/from-indonesias-poisoned-gold-tunnels-miners-look-to-farming
they are under threat from 
fight for them and 
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