River contamination in Pará is investigated by MPF; indigenous people report change in water color and find dead fish
May 31, 2022
16:05
Ívina Garcia – From Cenarium Magazine
MANAUS – Reports on river pollution and nutritional isolation of indigenous people have been growing in several territories that suffer from the advance of illegal mining on the margins of indigenous lands where mineral exploration pollutes the waters, changing courses and consequently killing vegetation and fish.
This weekend the Mapuera River indigenous people in Oriximiná, in the northwest region of Pará, found a large amount of dead fish, in addition to sediments polluting the river, and a change in the color of the water.
According to the Federal Public Ministry (MPF), the origin of the pollution is not yet known, but the agency requested federal, state and municipal authorities, emergency measures to investigate the source of the pollution and ensure food and drinking water for the approximately two thousand indigenous people who live in the place.
“There is evidence of illegal gold mining activity in the region of the upper Mapuera River and its tributaries, in areas bordering the Grão-Pará Ecological Station, which is why there is great concern about the toxicity of the water,” says the MPF.
“In addition to the environmental question, the indigenous people depend on the river for their water consumption and for their daily diet, which is largely based on fish. Today (Sunday, 29th), images of dead fish were registered, which severely affects the food and nutritional security of the people who depend on this natural resource for survival,” says the letter sent to the authorities.
The MPF informed the indigenous people that they communicated the situation by means of audio messages. “It is already increasing a lot, really increasing, the relatives have not taken any water, they are taking from the stream, they have not eaten anything, today, there, the water comes dirty” said an indigenous leader.
According to the indigenous people who have taken the reverse route of the river current, the source of the pollution is in the Jauari River, a tributary of the Mapuera, which has its sources inside the Grão-Pará Ecological Station, a conservation unit administered by the State and where there is suspicion of illegal mining. According to the leaders of the people who live in the region, helicopters frequently fly over the area.
The MPF also warns that the pollution may also affect other nearby rivers, such as the Trombetas River, where riverbank and quilombola communities may be affected, as well as two other Conservation Units: the Trombetas River Biological Reserve and the Saracá-Taquera National Forest, managed by the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio).
The region of the Mapuera, Trombetas, Cachorro, and Turuni rivers is home to three indigenous lands: Trombetas-Mapuera, Nhamundá-Mapuera, and Kaxuyana-Tunayana, in a large territory known as Wayamu, where groups of various peoples live, among them: Wai Wai, Tirió, Kaxuyana, and Tunayana. In the vicinity of the indigenous area there are eight quilombola communities and other riverine communities on the banks of the Trombetas, also threatened by pollution.
In the document, the MPF also requested measures from the National Indian Foundation (Funai), to ensure the supply of water and food while the river is polluted; the Special Indigenous Health District (Dsei) was requested to take measures to protect the health of the inhabitants. The support of the Municipality of Oriximiná, the Civil Defense of the State of Pará, and the management of ICMBio were also requested to support the supply of water and food for the duration of the emergency situation.
Investigation
The MPF also requested that the Federal Police (PF) initiate a police investigation to verify the existence of illegal mining in the region. Information has been requested from the Cuminapanema Ethno-Environmental Protection Front, linked to FUNAI, and the Institute of Forestry Development and Biodiversity of the State of Pará (Ideflor-Bio), about the operation of illegal mines.
The MPF also asked ICMBio and the Brazilian Institute of the Environment (Ibama) to fly over the region to try to identify the point of origin of the sediments that changed the color of the water. To the Municipal Secretariat of Environment and Mining of Oriximiná and the Federal University of Western Pará (Ufopa,) the request is to collect water samples from the Mapuera and Jauari rivers for further analysis.
Indigenous malnutrition
Recent research by Brazilians, published at Cambridge University, pointed to severe malnutrition among the Yanomami Indians, based on a change in the habits of the inhabitants who began consuming industrialized products. The pollution of the rivers is the main determining factor in the change of eating habits, especially among children.
The forced interaction of the Yanomami with non-indigenous people and land invaders has created a scenario of socio-environmental vulnerability for the people, especially the children. According to the study, this interaction has exposed children from almost every family to the consumption of processed products and ultra-processed foods of low nutritional value.
“Currently, the foods that mainly contribute to the energy intake of the Yanomami are purchased in regional markets, especially rice, tubers, beans, cassava flour and fruits,” points out the article.
Read more: Nutritional profile of Yanomami children points to severe malnutrition and worsening hunger
Public consultation
Also in May, the MPF held a public consultation to address illegal mining and mercury pollution in the Tapajós basin, in western Pará. According to a report by the Federal Public Ministry of Pará, at least six different rivers in the Tapajós basin are infected with mercury from mining: Teles Pires, Tapajós, Cururu, Kabitutu, das Tropas, and Kadriri.
The report also estimates that illegal gold mining dumps about 221 tons of mercury annually into the Tapajós River bed. According to the research made available to the agency, 7 out of 10 adolescents, between 10 and 19 years old, present high concentrations of mercury. In children under 12 years old, there are 8 out of 10; among those under 5 years old, 4 out of 10 present mercury samples.
According to technical studies, the levels of contamination by mercury have already reached serious levels. The study also found that 72.72% of those examined reported some sign or symptom of contamination and that, among these, at least 87.5% were of neurological origin.
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