Deforestation is not the biggest problem. Rivers became contaminated with mercury, a chemical used by miners to separate gold. This heavy metal vaporizes into the air and then falls into the earth and river systems, where it enters the food chain and can cause serious health problems, including fetal abnormalities and neurological and motor problems. Studies have shown a clear link between mining and exposure to this toxin. In one Yanomami villages, 92 percent of the residents have unsafe levels of mercury in their blood.
read more... https://e360.yale.edu/features/brazil-yanomami-mining-malaria-malnutrition-lula
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