The team supported the satellite results with on-ground field surveys
and data from the Carnegie Airborne Observatory (CAO). CAO uses Light
Detection and Ranging, or LiDAR, a technology that sweeps laser light
across the vegetation canopy to image it in 3-D. It can pinpoint the
location of single standing trees at 3.5 feet (1.1 meter) resolution.
The field and CAO data confirmed up to 94 percent of the CLASlite mine
detections.
In addition to damaging tropical forests, gold mining releases toxic
sediment into rivers, with severe effects on aquatic life. Other recent
research has shown that Peru's gold mining has contributed to widespread
mercury pollution, which affects the entire food chain, including the
food ingested by people throughout the region.
http://eponline.com/articles/2013/10/30/illicit-gold-mines-destroy-peruvian-rainforest.aspx
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