Preliminary Assessment of Plastic Litter and Microplastic Contamination in Freshwater Depositional Areas: The Case Study of Puerto Misahualli, Ecuadorian Amazonia

et al. 2021

Preprint

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As the number of legal and illegal mining sites increase, integrative methods to evaluate the effects of mining pollution on Andes-Amazonia freshwater ecosystems are paramount. Here, we sampled water and sediments in 11 sites potentially affected by mining activities in the Napo province (Ecuador). The environmental impacts were evaluated using four lines of evidence (LOEs): water physico-chemical parameters; metal exposure concentrations; macroinvertebrate community response (AAMBI); and toxicity by conducting bioassays with Lactuca sativa and Daphnia magna. Overall, dissolved oxygen and total suspended solids were, under (&lt;80%) and above (&gt;130 mg/Ls) quality standards. Ag, Al, As, Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb and Zn in water and V, B and Cr in sediments were detected above quality standards. Nine out of eleven sites were classified as having bad environmental quality based on the AAMBI. Ranges of L. sativa seed germination in both water (37% to 70%) and sediment (0% to 65%), indicate significant toxicity. In 5 sites, neonates of D. magna showed a 25% reduction in survival compared to the control. Our integrated LOEs index ranked sites regarding their environmental degradation. Given the importance of the Andes-Amazon region, we recommend environmental impact monitoring of the mining expansion using multiple LOEs.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

An Integrative Approach to Assess the Environmental Impacts of Gold Mining Contamination in the Amazon

Capparelli

Cabrera

et al. 2021

Preprint

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“…For instance, sites P6 and P11 are located less than 1 km away from approximately 50 Indigenous communities that depend on rivers to obtain water for daily use. Moreover, the intensive flood regimes in the upper Napo basin rivers can lead to the storage of contaminated sediments along riverbanks near human settlements (Appleton et al, 2001; Lucas‐Solis et al, 2021). The degree of contamination of both water and sediments (Capparelli et al 2021) and the HI and TCR calculated for these sites suggest that it might be possible that local communities have been consuming water with metal and metalloid levels greater than the recommended for a relatively long time.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human health risk assessment of metals and metalloids in mining areas of the Northeast Andean foothills of the Ecuadorian Amazon

Galarza

Moulatlet

Integr Envir Assess & Manag

et al. 2022

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This article is part of the special series "Diversity of Knowledge for a Sustainable Future in Latin America" and highlights timely research presented at the virtual SETAC Latin America 14th Biennial Meeting (2021). These articles reflect the urgent need to combine different knowledge sources and expertise to face current environmental challenges, decision-making, and problem solving. Risk, recovery, restoration, modeling, regulations, anthropic impact, and human health are some of the global environmental issues covered in this special series.

“…River meanders, floodplains, and basin outlets can be considered as sink areas that constantly receive washed-off materials from upstream areas. The flooding regimes of the rivers of the upper Napo basin may also lead to the storage of contaminated sediments on river margins, which can be eroded and sporadically redistributed [ 54 , 55 ]. Whether this is the case in the study area, requires further investigations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Integrative Approach to Assess the Environmental Impacts of Gold Mining Contamination in the Amazon

Capparelli

Cabrera

et al. 2021

Toxics

Self Cite

As the number of legal and illegal gold mining sites increases in the Andes–Amazonia region, integrative methods to evaluate the effects of mining pollution on freshwater ecosystems are of paramount importance. Here, we sampled water and sediments in 11 sites potentially affected by gold mining activities in the Napo province (Ecuador). The environmental impacts were evaluated using the following lines of evidence (LOEs): water physicochemical parameters, metal exposure concentrations, macroinvertebrate community response (AAMBI), and toxicity by conducting bioassays with Lactuca sativa and Daphnia magna. Dissolved oxygen and total suspended solids were under (<80%) and above (>130 mg/Ls) quality standards 65% of the sites. Ag, Al, As, Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb, and Zn in water and V, B, and Cr in sediments were detected above quality standards at sampled sites. Nine out of eleven sites were classified as having bad environmental quality based on the AAMBI. L. sativa seed germination in both water (37% to 70%) and sediment (0% to 65%) indicate significant toxicity. In five sites, neonates of D. magna showed a 25% reduction in survival compared to the control. Our integrated LOEs index ranked sites regarding their environmental degradation. We recommend environmental impact monitoring of the mining expansion at the Andes–Amazonia region using multiple LOEs.