Scientists find gold worth $2 million in Switzerland sewage system

BERN, Switzerland — Scientists have struck gold in an unlikely place: Swiss sewage and waste water treatment plants. An estimated 95 pounds of gold is flushed through Swiss sewage systems each year, according to a study by the aquatic science institute Eawag. The lost gold is worth nearly $2 million at current prices. The researchers believe the tiny flecks of gold flow into the waste water system from the country’s famed watchmaking industry and gold refineries.