Elevated mercury concentrations in soils,
sediments, water, and fish of the
The Science of the Total Environment,
Volume 260, Issue 1-3,
Lechler, P J; Miller, J R; Lacerda,
L D; Vinson, D; Bonzongo, J
C; Lyons, W B; Warwick, J J
Summary of
Points:
·
Previous
site-specific investigations have found that mercury concentrations in water,
sediments, and biota of the Brazilian Amazon are elevated above global
averages, and that these concentrations are a direct result of widespread
mercury amalgamation mining operations conducted by non-organized prospectors.
·
In
order to assess the regional impacts of Hg contamination from these
non-organized gold mining activities, water, sediments, and fish were
systematically collected in 1997 along a 900-km reach of the
·
Mercury
concentrations were found to be elevated above global averages in all sampled
media. However, the geochemical data suggest that the
high mercury levels are due largely to natural sources and natural
biogeochemical processes, and that the impacts of anthropogenically released mercury from mine sites is
relatively localized. [Journal Article; In English;