Download or read book The Amazon Gold Rush and Environmental Mercury Contamination written by Daniel Marcos Bonotto and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The importance of the Amazon area to sustain the global equilibrium in the environment has been recognised world-wide. This has been much more accentuated in the present days due to the intense debate related to global warming. Consequently, all initiatives/studies directed to a better knowledge/management of that huge environment are welcome and needed. This book is a contribution to this task, as gold has been exploited intensively in the Brazilian Amazon during the past 30 years using garimpo methods (small-scale gold mining), where the elemental mercury (Hg) used in amalgamating the gold, the final stage of the ore dressing process, has caused abnormal Hg concentrations in waterways. This has occurred in several areas of the Amazon region, where most of the ore prospected is alluvial. Particular attention to the Madeira River has been given since 1986 by several investigators. The main reason for this is that the Madeira River is the largest tributary of the Amazon River and the gold mining was officially allowed on a 350-km sector of the river, for its mid and upper reach, in the north-western reach of the Amazon basin. Consequently, mercury was released from gold-mining fields to the atmosphere or to waterways in the metallic form, due to the large number of mechanical dredges operating simultaneously (about 6,000 during the peak mining activities). Although Hg0 is relatively immobile in the aquatic environment and its solubility is low in water, Hg contamination in people living upstream and downstream from garimpos has been reported. The gold-mining activities on the Madeira River basin reduced substantially in the present days, i.e. it is practically absent. However, despite this, it is necessary a better understanding of the Hg behaviour in tropical aquatic systems, mainly close to the most populated areas, as people may be still suffering toxicological consequences of the Hg releases in the past. Therefore, even in the present days, the knowledge of the mercury occurring in the aquatic system of the Madeira River basin is a great concern by local/international authorities and environmentalists, since it can contribute for identifying the effects of the anthropogenic Hg inputs relatively to the background reference levels expressing the natural Hg concentration. This book describes the results obtained on the analysis of samples of water, bottom sediments, suspended solids and fishes that were collected at the Madeira River basin, Brazil, with the purpose of investigating the mercury release in the aquatic environment as a consequence of the gold mining activities.
Download or read book Informal Gold Mining and Mercury Pollution in Brazil written by Dan Biller and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 1994 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The gold rush in the Amazon region is creating serious environmental problems that imperil future generations. Mercury pollution is a particularly serious problem that should be addressed through an education campaign, through the use of more appropriate (and inexpensive) extraction technologies, and through an effective combination of command and control measures and market- based incentives.
Download or read book Mercury Contamination from Historic Gold Mining in California written by Charles N. Alpers and published by . This book was released on 2000 with total page 6 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Mercury from Gold and Silver Mining written by Luiz D.de Lacerda and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Due to its inherent characteristics, mercury contamination from gold mining is a major environmental problem compared to past mercury contamination from industrial point sources. The worsening of social-economical conditions and increasing gold prices in the late 1970s resulted in a new rush for gold by individual entrepreneurs for whom Hg amalgamation is a cheap and easily carried out operation. Even after the present-day mining areas are exhausted, the mercury left behind will remain part of the biochemical cycle of the tropical forest. This book reviews the current information on mercury from gold mining, its cycling in the environment and its long-term ecotoxicological impact. The book is illustrated with numerous diagrams and photographs.
Download or read book Informal Gold Mining and Mercury Pollution in Brazil written by Ajay Shah and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Amazon region has been responsible for a major share of Brazilian gold production in recent years. The region has witnessed a sizable gold rush comparable only to the California gold rush last century. The gold rush has spawned a powerful informal mining sector and has attracted many people - some who have come to the region in search of wealth and some who were already there but were displaced from other, unsuccessful economic activities. What these people encounter at the mining sites are dreadful living and working conditions. Gold mining also causes substantial environmental problems, which may persist whether gold deposits do or not. The author discusses the environmental effects of gold mining in the region, focusing on mercury pollution. Mercury, an important input in gold extraction, is being discharged into the atmosphere and the rivers at alarming rates. The environmental costs of the present extraction, is being discharged into the atmosphere and the rivers at alarming rates. The environmental costs of the present extraction technology will be faced primarily by future generations, because of natural chemical processes. Although removing the mercury already discharged from the Amazonian environment may be an enormous task, at least future discharges should be curtailed through the use of appropriate technology, environmental education, and a combination of command and control measures and market-based incentives. The author describes the gold extraction process and the extent of mercury use and contamination. He analyzes key elements of the environmental problem, especially the informal miner and the fish economy. Finally, he suggests a combination of command and control regulations and market-based incentives adapted to the informal gold mining economic environment. He emphasizes the need for an education campaign about the perils of using mercury and the availability of more appropriate, and inexpensive, alternative extraction technologies.
Download or read book Mercury Contamination from Historic Gold Mining in California written by Charles N. Alpers and published by . This book was released on 2000 with total page 6 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Mercury Pollution Integration and Synthesis written by Carl J. Watras and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 1994-11-11 with total page 760 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book contains 57 chapters describing the results of original research and reviewing the state-of-the-science with respect to environmental mercury. Topics include analytical methodology, atmospheric cycling, freshwater and marine ecosystems, terrestrial processes, bioaccumulation, modeling, pollution and remediation, and human health and public policy.
Download or read book Mercury Hazards to Living Organisms written by Ronald Eisler and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2006-03-14 with total page 333 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Complex and ever changing in its forms and functions, the element mercury follows a convoluted course through the environment and up the food chain. The process is complicated further by the fact that the difference between tolerable natural background levels and harmful effects in the environment is exceptionally small and still not completely und
Download or read book Informal Gold Mining and Mercury Pollution in Brazil written by Dan Biller and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 1994 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The gold rush in the Amazon region is creating serious environmental problems that imperil future generations. Mercury pollution is a particularly serious problem that should be addressed through an education campaign, through the use of more appropriate (and inexpensive) extraction technologies, and through an effective combination of command and control measures and market- based incentives.
Download or read book Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology written by George W. Ware and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 159 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology provides detailed review articles concerned with aspects of chemical contaminants, including pesticides, in the total environment with toxicological considerations and consequences.
Download or read book Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology written by George Ware and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2006-06-01 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology attempts to provide concise, critical reviews of timely advances, philosophy, and significant areas of accomplished or needed endeavor in the total field of xenobiotics in any segment of the environment, as well as toxicology implications.
Download or read book Mercury as a Global Pollutant written by Donald B. Porcella and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 1291 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS xiv PART I MERCURY AND HUMAN HEALTH B. WHEATLEY and S. PARADIS I Exposure of Canadian Aboriginal Peoples to Methylmercury 3-11 M. GIRARD and C. DUMONT I Exposure of James Bay Cree to Methylmercury during Pregnancy for the Years 1983-91 13-19 M. RICHARDSON, M. MITCHELL, S. COAD and R. RAPHAEL I Exposure to Mercury in Canada: A Multimedia Analysis 21-30 M. RICHARDSON, M. EGYED and D. J. CURRIE I Human Exposure to Mercury may Decrease as Acidic Deposition Increases 31-39 L. E. FLEMING, S. WATKINS, R. KADERMAN, B. LEVIN, D. R. AVYAR, M. BIZZIO, D. STEPHENS and J. A. BEAN I Mercury Exposure in Humans through Food Consumption from the Everglades of Florida 41-48 J. M. GEARHART, H. J. CLEWELL III, K. S. CRUMP, A. M. SHIPP and A. SILVERS I Pharmacokinetic Dose Estimates of Mercury in Children and Dose-Response Curves of Performance Tests in a Large Epidemiological Study 49-58 I. SKARE I Mass Balance and Systemic Uptake of Mercury Released from Dental Amalgam Fillings 59-67 J. DELLINGER, N. KMIECIK, S. GERSTENBERGER and H. NGU I Mercury Contamina tion of Fish in the Ojibwa Diet: I. Walleye Fillets and Skin-On versus Skin-Off Sampling 69-76 J. DELLINGER, L. MALEK and M. BEATTIE I Mercury Contamination of Fish in the Ojibwa Diet: II. Sensory Evoked Responses in Rats Fed Walleye 77-83 H. AKAGI, O. MALM, F. J. P. BRANCHES, Y. KINJO, Y. KASHIMA, J. R. D. GUIMARAES, R. B. OLIVEIRA, K. HARAGUCHI, W. C. PFEIFFER, Y.
Download or read book The Socio Economic Impacts of Artisanal and Small Scale Mining in Developing Countries written by G.M. Hilson and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2003-01-01 with total page 738 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The purpose of this book is to examine both the positive and negative socioeconomic impacts of artisanal and small-scale mining in developing countries. In recent years, a number of governments have attempted to formalize this rudimentary sector of industry, recognizing its socioeconomic importance. However, the industry continues to be plagued by
Download or read book Mining and its Environmental Impact written by R E Hester and published by Royal Society of Chemistry. This book was released on 2007-10-31 with total page 182 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This first Issue in the series contains nine articles written by leading British and American experts from the mining industry, regulatory authorities, and academia, and incorporates the latest research. Following an introductory overview of many of the issues of current concern to the field, the book deals with a wide variety of topics, ranging from the environmental impact of gold mining in the Brazilian Amazon, through the issues relevant to coal mining, vegetative and other remediation strategies and procedures and water pollution, to a thorough analysis of environmental management and policy initiatives. The issues raised in Mining and its Environmental Impact may point the way to future solutions to the economic, technological and environmental problems associated with mining in all its aspects and make this volume key reading for practitioners and researchers in the field, as well as for environmentalists generally.
Download or read book Mercury Contaminated Sites written by Berdj Kenadjian and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2005-11 with total page 584 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From Darkness to Light is the true story of how two little-known men, guided by unseen celestial forces, confronted and overcame overwhelming obstacles to create a new understanding of the root causes of world disorder and its bitter fruit of widespread anxiety.
Download or read book Environmental Impacts of Mining Activities written by Jose M. Azcue and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 330 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since the mining industry is still expanding, comprehensive information on the effects of mining activities on the environment is needed. This book provides information on biological and physico-chemical treatments of mining effluents, on factors affecting human health and on environmental effects that have to be taken into account by the mining industry when aiming for sustainable development of their industry. Further regulatory guidelines and legislation relevant to the decommissioning of mining sites are reviewed. Mining industry, consulting companies, and governmental agencies alike will find a wealth of valuable information in this book.
Download or read book Mercury Contaminated Sites written by Ralf Ebinghaus and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-11-11 with total page 538 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An up-to-date overview of the characterization, risk assessment and remediation of mercury-contaminated sites. The book summarizes, for the first time, works from Europe, Russia and the American continent, and review chapters are supplemented by detailed, international case studies.
