Deadly truth behind gold mining

A miner drizzles mercury into the ground to help separate gold dust from mud along the Maroni River in Suriname. — ©2023 The New York Times Company

JEOVANE de Jesus Aguiar was knee-deep in mud in the 100m gash he had cut into the Amazon rainforest, filtering brown water out of a pan, when he found the small, shiny flake he was looking for: a mixture of gold and mercury.

Aguiar had drizzled liquid mercury into the ground in his makeshift gold mine on the eastern edge of the small South American nation of Suriname, just as he had every few days.