Since the 2008 stock market crash, gold demand is continuously rising. Gold is considered a stable investment for those losing faith in the American dollar and other forms of currency. In 2001, gold cost $271 per ounce, and has stayed similarly low since the 1980’s. However, prices steadily increased after the 2008 stock market crash and in 2012 prices reached a peak of over $1,668 per ounce (London Gold Fixing, 2015). With such an insanely high demand for such a limited resource, impoverished families in the Amazon rainforest have taken to mining gold for small fortunes.
The process for mining this gold is devastating to the Amazon rainforest. To sleuth through enough soil for an ounce of gold involves clear cutting of entire swaths of land and washing away soil that has been nourishing the Amazon Rainforest for millions of years. Devastating environmental consequences aside, the final step in separating the gold from the rest of the heavy metals collected in the sleuthing is to actually burn off mercury (Aaronson, 2012). This mercury accumulates in the atmosphere, as well as the nearby rivers and streams, subsequently poisoning the nearby river villages and cities in Brazil.
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