Learn about effects of mercury used in gold mining on drinking water of innocent wildlife in Amazon Basin
Gold and other mineral deposits in parts of the Amazon River basin have drawn both corporate and individual mining efforts.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
-
© 2026 Thomson ReutersOne robot ran a sub-9 second 100-meter dash in a 2026 competition—and promptly crashed into a padded wall.
-
NASA/Dryden Research Aircraft Movie CollectionAn X-15 rocket-powered research aircraft launching from a U.S. Air Force B-52, c. 1960s.
-
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Learn about the origins and diversification of uncrewed aerial vehicles, or drones, from early military models to modern consumer-level devices.
-
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Media Editor: Lauren Sims
-
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Learn how the Andes Mountains block warm moist air, causing persistent heavy rainfall on their eastern slopes that feeds the Amazon River.
-
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.The size of the Amazon River basin in relation to the U.S. state of Texas.
-
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Shantytowns filled with gold miners in the Amazon River basin.
News •
Cave stalagmites document global patterns in monsoon rainfall over the past 450,000 years
• Oct. 21, 2026, 12:27 PM ET (Nature)
Transcript
NARRATOR: Not all who come to the Amazon do so to become farmers. Countless thousands have left the cities to search for gold.
To begin mining, the surface of the land is cleared and deep pits are dug.
Water pumped from a nearby river turns immense quantities of soil into a thin slurry. In the slurry are tiny flecks of gold that the miners will extract.
Working in squalid conditions, the men pan for gold.
Later, toxic mercury is used to extract gold from the material panned out by the miners. The mercury is easily removed to yield gold and other metals, which the miners sell. But downstream of the mine, the river—relied upon by wildlife and indigenous peoples—is contaminated by mercury.
To begin mining, the surface of the land is cleared and deep pits are dug.
Water pumped from a nearby river turns immense quantities of soil into a thin slurry. In the slurry are tiny flecks of gold that the miners will extract.
Working in squalid conditions, the men pan for gold.
Later, toxic mercury is used to extract gold from the material panned out by the miners. The mercury is easily removed to yield gold and other metals, which the miners sell. But downstream of the mine, the river—relied upon by wildlife and indigenous peoples—is contaminated by mercury.
Last Modification: