Mongolia's ninja miners risk all for scraps of gold

WITH little to no safety equipment these miners dig in the dead of night hoping to strike it lucky

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Working 12 hour days many of the miners are forced to bring their children to the mines with them and often train them up from a young age

Known as 'ninja miners' these brave men and women forage through abandoned mining sites hoping to find jade, gold and other valuable natural minerals to sell.

Photographer Asher Svidensky spent a month and a half photographing the ninja miners and coal collectors in Nalaikh, Mongolia

Mainly composed of former herders, the miners are referred to as ninjas due to the green pans they carry on their backs as well as the way in which they avoid detection by officials as it is considered illegal.

Photographer and former soldier Asher Svidensky, 26, took the amazing pictures while in Nalaikh a mining town in Ulaanbaatar, the capital city of Mongolia.

The miners descend into shafts with little structural support and endure bitter cold or searing heat deep underground

He said: “I've travelled to Mongolia many times in the past few years, I fell in love with the country. Since my first visit I heard about the ninja miners many times but on this occasion I had some free time so i went to see it for myself.”

In 2003 there were approximately 30,000 ninja miners in Mongolia, which increased to 100,000 in 2007

Many of Mongolia’s nomadic herdsmen were forced into illegal mining due to financial hardships as a result of harsh winters in the country in 2001 and 2002.

The ninja mining process starts by a group of miners digging a hole usually 10–15 feet deep using iron stakes

This period, which is known as ‘dzud' in Mongolia, saw a third of the country’s livestock die leaving the herdsmen no other means of making money.

During his time among the miners Asher found that they were a mix of native Nalaikh people and herders.

Many ninja miners are Mongolians who lost their jobs after the fall of Communism in Mongolia and became traditional herders

He said: “Every year many headers lose livestock to the cold winter but some lose so much they are forced to leave their ancient lifestyle and move to a city in order to survive. Those who are lucky go to bigger cities but some can’t afford it so go to Nalakikh, sacrificing their health in illegal mining areas."

Known as ninja miners these brave men and women forage through abandoned mining sites hoping to find valuable natural minerals

Although the illegal mines provide these men and women with a means to support their family, the risks to their health is great with many of the miners forced to breathe in coal on a daily basis without protection.

Small holes in the ground can go as deep as 80 metres with only a single rope to help the miners' go up and down

Asher said: “Small holes in the ground can go as deep as 80 meters with a single rope to help them go up and down. You can never stand there and most of the time you crawl on the ground.”

The nickname comes from the green bowls some gold diggers carry on their backs, which resemble the shells sported by the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle cartoon characters

Working 12 hour days many of the mine workers are forced to bring their children with them to the mine and train them to become expert miners.

Asher said: “A miner called ‘Sparrow' was raised in Nalaikh all his life and was one of the 'sparrow kids', these kids were trained by their families from a very young age to be pro miners."