Precious metals are rare and beautiful metals like gold, silver, platinum, and palladium. They are among the most valuable resources in the world and are used to make jewellery and electrical equipment.
Chemically, precious metals don’t react with other metals. Gold, silver and platinum stay shiny.
Industrial precious metal mining can destroy landscapes, contaminate water supplies with mercury and cyanide, and contribute to the destruction of ecosystems.
Find below several maps of the world showing where the main reserves of various precious metals are found.
Mexico – the largest producer of silver in the world and home to four of the 25 largest silver mining companies.
Peru has the world’s largest silver reserves (98,000 tonnes)
China has the third largest reserves in the world (71,000 tonnes) and is also the third largest silver producer.
Australia – most of the silver is sourced from galena, which is also mined for its lead content. Cannington Mine in Queensland is the largest silver and lead mine in the world.
Russia is a top silver producer.
Poland is one of the world’s biggest producers of silver.
Bolivia and Chile both produce a lot of silver.
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