In Honduras, artisanal miners have traditionally used dangerous amounts of toxic mercury to extract the precious metal from rocks. The excess mercury then enters the air and the soil, creating both environmental and health problems.
Mercury is incredibly toxic to the environment and to the human body. Raptor Mining is working with a solution.
Greater Exposure, Greater Contamination.
Poisoning the Entire Ecosystem
The dangers of mercury exposure through mining are significant because the mercury is released into both the air and soil, which affects groundwater as well. Indigenous people in these mining communities take in mercury through the food they eat, skin contact, and breathing the air. The effects of built up mercury vapor concentration in the human body can include hallucinations, suicidal thoughts, muscular seizures, delirium, respiratory problems, strange sensations, and even death. If mercury exposure is continued, then increasing chances of violent muscular contractions and kidney problems occur. The prolonged concentration of mercury in a human body is mainly in liver, brain, bones, fatty tissues, spleen, and blood.