Peruvian Gold Rush Threatens Health and the Environment

Abstract

recalls when his neighbor's nine-year-old son accidentally drank mercury from a bottle he found in the family's home. When the boy died two years later, his parents separated, his mother blaming her husband for not keeping the bottle out of their son's reach. It is a cautionary tale in Madre de Dios, a region in southeastern Peru where smallscale, "artisanal" gold miners like Miranda and his neighbor use mercury every day, with little or no equipment to protect themselves against skin contact or inhalation of vapor.Artisanal miners use rudimentary methods and operate largely outside the law and the formal economy. Worldwide, their labors contribute an estimated 400 metric tons (t) of atmospheric mercury every yearsabout 10% of the total, according to Kevin Telmer of the University of Victoria School of Earth and Ocean Sciences (Canada). But in this corner of southeastern Peru, where as many as 30,000 miners work, little is known about how much mercury enters waterways or the atmosphere, how far it travels, where it ends up in the food chain, or how it affects human health.Artisanal mining is grueling, hazardous work, and Peruvian environmental officials call it a "scourge" because of the deforestation and mercury pollution it causes. Miners counter that the small-scale operations employ some 100,000 laborers nationwidesfar more than the large open-pit mines that are the mainstay of Peru's export economy.Both arguments have some truth to them, and some regional officials and scientists are seeking a middle ground that would make mining more efficient and decrease its environmental impact by reducing mercury use.In an effort early this year to control mining in Madre de Dios, the Peruvian government declared a moratorium on new mining concessions. But local officials say it has had little effect because most miners operate illegally anyway, without formal title to their claims.

Plant and animal endemism in the eastern Andean slope: challenges to conservation

“…Considering ongoing threats in the region from infrastructure development [88], oil extraction [89], gold mining [90,91], illicit crops [36], and the continually advancing agricultural fronts, more carefully situated protected areas and novel land use regulation strategies will be necessary to safeguard substantial amounts of biodiversity.…”

Gold Mining in the Peruvian Amazon: Global Prices, Deforestation, and Mercury Imports

“…The environmental and health problems caused by mercury are well documented [13], yet its use continues to be an intrinsic component in today's artisanal mining [8], [14]. Artisanal miners are directly exposed to liquid mercury as well as to vapors during gold processing, which releases mercury directly into sediments, waterways and the atmosphere.…”

Mercury Exposure Among Artisanal Gold Miners in Madre de Dios, Peru: A Cross-sectional Study

“…Previous research found elevated mercury exposure among residents of artisanal mining communities throughout Asia [6,7], Africa [8,9], and South America [10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17]. The Peruvian Amazon is a growing hotbed for artisanal mining, and there is growing concern over the extensive environmental mercury contamination that is occurring here [18][19][20]. One region in particular-Madre de Dios-is estimated to house approximately 30,000 artisanal miners [18].…”

“…The Peruvian Amazon is a growing hotbed for artisanal mining, and there is growing concern over the extensive environmental mercury contamination that is occurring here [18][19][20]. One region in particular-Madre de Dios-is estimated to house approximately 30,000 artisanal miners [18]. However, many studies from this region have important laboratory limitations, with many not calculating creatinine-corrected urine mercury concentrations, and most not assessing blood methylmercury.…”