Across the Amazon Basin, the search for gold has unleashed a crisis both environmental and human. Illegal and small-scale gold mining depends on mercury to separate gold from stone. That mercury seeps into rivers, the air, and the food people eat, poisoning ecosystems and communities alike. This week, WCS Wild Audio has the story of how—from Ecuador to Bolivia —conservationists and Indigenous leaders are fighting back.


Reporting: Nat Moss

Guests: Sebastian Valdivieso, Óscar Loayza

WCS Wild Audio

Wildlife Conservation Society

S7 E3: Gold Mining and Mercury in the Amazon

FEB 20, 202613 MIN
WCS Wild Audio

S7 E3: Gold Mining and Mercury in the Amazon

FEB 20, 202613 MIN

Description

Across the Amazon Basin, the search for gold has unleashed a crisis both environmental and human. Illegal and small-scale gold mining depends on mercury to separate gold from stone. That mercury seeps into rivers, the air, and the food people eat, poisoning ecosystems and communities alike. This week, WCS Wild Audio has the story of how—from Ecuador to Bolivia —conservationists and Indigenous leaders are fighting back. Reporting: Nat Moss Guests: Sebastian Valdivieso, Óscar Loayza