Brazil's heavy metal pollution harms humans and ecosystems
Joel Henrique Ellwanger, José Artur Bogo Chies
Abstract
This letter draws attention to the worrying situation of heavy metal pollution in Brazil, especially concerning the Amazon's Indigenous peoples affected by mercury contamination from illegal gold mining activities. Heavy metal pollution is also an emerging problem in other Brazilian biomes besides the Amazon Forest (e.g., Pampa biome in southern Brazil), as well as in coastal ecosystems/regions and large cities. Despite being a neglected problem, Brazil's heavy metal pollution causes significant detrimental impacts on human health and ecosystems. Finally, some alternatives to overcome this problem are suggested.
Topics & Concepts
Amazon rainforestBiomePollutionEcosystemIndigenousEnvironmental protectionMercury (programming language)GeographyHeavy metalsBiodiversityEnvironmental scienceEcologyEnvironmental chemistryBiologyComputer scienceChemistryProgramming languageHeavy metals in environmentMercury impact and mitigation studiesHeavy Metal Exposure and Toxicity