Occupational human exposure to mercury in artisanal small-scale gold mining communities of Colombia

Calao-Ramos, Clelia; Bravo, Andrea G.; Paternina–Uribe, Roberth; Marrugo‐Negrete, José; Dı́ez, Sergi

doi:10.1016/j.envint.2020.106216

Cited by 46 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 34 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…This cluster reflects a marked trend of studies focused on the health and environmental effects of mercury or methylmercury contamination in soil, sediments, and water [257][258][259]. This type of contamination generated significant research on health problems associated with direct or indirect exposure of humans to mercury due to mining activities [167,[260][261][262][263], as well as studies evaluating the risk posed to human health by ingestion of heavy metals that are present in the water and plants [176,[264][265][266].…”

Section: Cluster 3 (Green Colour): Mercury Contamination and Its Impl...mentioning

confidence: 99%

A Bibliometric Analysis of the Scientific Research on Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining

Morante-Carballo

Montalván-Burbano²,

Aguilar³

et al. 2022

IJERPH

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Mineral resource exploitation is one of the activities that contribute to economic growth and the development of society. Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) is one of these activities. Unfortunately, there is no clear consensus to define ASM. However, its importance is relevant in that it represents, in some cases, the only employment alternative for millions of people, although it also significantly impacts the environment. This work aims to investigate the scientific information related to ASM through a bibliometric analysis and, in addition, to define the new lines that are tending to this field. The study comprises three phases of work: (i) data collection, (ii) data processing and software selection, and (iii) data interpretation. The results reflect that the study on ASM developed intensively from 2010 to the present. In general terms, the research addressed focuses on four interrelated lines: (i) social conditioning factors of ASM, (ii) environmental impacts generated by ASM, (iii) mercury contamination and its implication on health and the environment, and (iv) ASM as a livelihood. The work also defines that geotourism in artisanal mining areas is a significant trend of the last decade, explicitly focusing on the conservation and use of the geological and mining heritage and, in addition, the promotion of sustainable development of ASM.

show abstract

Section: Cluster 3 (Green Colour): Mercury Contamination and Its Impl...mentioning

confidence: 99%

A Bibliometric Analysis of the Scientific Research on Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining

Morante-Carballo

Montalván-Burbano²,

Aguilar³

et al. 2022

IJERPH

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…It is well-known that mining and ore processing areas are known to be major sources of mercury pollution, especially mercury-enriched ore deposits that have been exploited for centuries by inadequate techniques [3]. The other anthropogenic sources of mercury are small-scale gold mining, coal combustion, metal smelting and cement production [4,5]. Despite the awareness of the negative mercury impact on both human health and global environment, some of the mercury compounds are still used in the production of vinyl chloride, chlorine-based chemicals, in dentistry and in skin lightening products, but also in traditional medicines and some ritualistic and religious practices [6,7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Among all mercury compounds, organic mercury is considered to be the most dangerous due to rapid and extensive absorption by the human body through the food chain. For preventing or reducing the exposure to these pollutants, the remediation of mercury-polluted environments is of primary interest [5,9]. In a selection of remediation technology, the main approaches include immobilization of the contaminant or its removal from polluted media, using ex situ or in situ technologies.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Natural Zeolite Clinoptilolite for Remediation of Mercury-Contaminated Environment

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The soil at ancient roasting sites in the surroundings of the Idrija mine (Slovenia) is highly contaminated with mercury. To assess the impact of mercury on groundwater by infiltration and find an eco-friendly remediation method, the leaching of mercury from the soil containing 1347 mg Hg/kg, followed by sorption of the total leached mercury on cost-effective natural zeolite (NZ) clinoptilolite, was performed. The leaching of soil in ultrapure water of pHo = 3.00–11.46 after 24 h resulted in the total leached mercury concentration in the range 0.33–17.43 µg/L. Much higher concentrations (136.9–488.0 µg/L) were determined after the first few hours of leaching and were high above the maximum permissible level in water for human consumption. The NZ showed very good sorption of the total leached mercury, with a maximum removal efficiency of 94.2%. The leaching of mercury in presence of the NZ resulted in a significant decrease of the total leached mercury (1.9–20.3 µg/L compared to 12.8–42.2 µg/L), with removal efficiencies up to 90.5%, indicating immobilization of mercury species. The NZ has a great potential for economically viable remediation of mercury-contaminated environment. However, efforts should be made in the further study of mercury leachability to reduce the mercury concentration in water to acceptable levels.

show abstract

“…For regions that host ASGM activity, however, the THg hair biomarker for population monitoring of MeHg exposure has not been recommended in the draft effectiveness evaluation of the Minamata Convention [4,20], due to questions raised in recent reports [13,[21][22][23]. These doubts are based on studies of individuals engaged in ASGM activity showing that the percentage of hair THg as MeHg ranged from 1% to 110% (Supplemental Information Table S1) [22,[24][25][26][27][28][29]. In contrast, control groups consisting of individuals from areas with no known ASGM activity had average hair %MeHg values of 84% ± 18% (Supplemental Information Table S2) [22,[30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While these prior studies in ASGM areas suggest that hair THg levels could overestimate dietary MeHg exposure in the community [43], these studies are not designed to inform population monitoring practices as they used non-random selection of small, convenience samples with limited spatial variability, or they directly targeted individuals involved in gold refining [29]. For example, 5 of the 7 studies had N < 28 participants across 1-3 locations (Table S1).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Efficacy of Hair Total Mercury Content as a Biomarker of Methylmercury Exposure to Communities in the Area of Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining in Madre de Dios, Peru

Koenigsmark

Weinhouse

Berky

et al. 2021

IJERPH

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Total mercury content (THg) in hair is an accepted biomarker for chronic dietary methylmercury (MeHg) exposure. In artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) communities, the validity of this biomarker is questioned because of the potential for contamination from inorganic mercury. As mining communities may have both inorganic and organic mercury exposures, the efficacy of the hair-THg biomarker needs to be evaluated, particularly as nations begin population exposure assessments under their commitments to the Minamata Convention. We sought to validate the efficacy of hair THg for public health monitoring of MeHg exposures for populations living in ASGM communities. We quantified both THg and MeHg contents in hair from a representative subset of participants (N = 287) in a large, population-level mercury exposure assessment in the ASGM region in Madre de Dios (MDD), Peru. We compared population MeHg-THg correlations and %MeHg values with demographic variables including community location, sex, occupation, and nativity. We observed that hair MeHg-THg correlations were high (r > 0.7) for all communities, regardless of location or nativity. Specifically, for individuals within ASGM communities, 81% (121 of 150 total) had hair THg predominantly in the form of MeHg (i.e., >66% of THg) and reflective of dietary exposure to mercury. Furthermore, for individuals with hair THg exceeding the U.S. EPA threshold (1.0 μg/g), 88 out of 106 (83%) had MeHg as the predominant form. As a result, had urine THg solely been used for mercury exposure monitoring, approximately 59% of the ASGM population would have been misclassified as having low mercury exposure. Our results support the use of hair THg for monitoring of MeHg exposure of populations in ASGM settings where alternative biomarkers of MeHg exposure are not feasible.

show abstract

Occupational human exposure to mercury in artisanal small-scale gold mining communities of Colombia

Cited by 46 publications

References 34 publications

A Bibliometric Analysis of the Scientific Research on Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining

A Bibliometric Analysis of the Scientific Research on Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining

Assessment of Natural Zeolite Clinoptilolite for Remediation of Mercury-Contaminated Environment

Efficacy of Hair Total Mercury Content as a Biomarker of Methylmercury Exposure to Communities in the Area of Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining in Madre de Dios, Peru

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About