Mercury pollution linked to illegal gold mining in Peru reaches lethal levels

Illegal gold production in the South American nation has, in fact, increased fivefold in the last six years and is estimated to provide 100,000 direct jobs in the country with an estimated 40,000 of them in the Madre de Dios region.
According to Peru’s ministry of environment, the activity has destroyed 18,000 hectares of Amazon so far, mainly due to the use of mercury, a by-product of artisanal gold mining.
In discussing the overall human impact, Carnegie’s study warns the population segment most vulnerable to mercury poisoning had the highest average mercury levels: women of childbearing age. As a neurotoxin, mercury can cause severe, permanent brain damage to an unborn child.
http://www.mining.com/mercury-pollution-linked-to-illegal-gold-mining-in-peru-reaches-lethal-levels-73281/