Latest news with #Minamata
The Guardian
25-07-2025
- The Guardian
It is one of the deadliest chemicals on Earth – but even Mexico's cartels can't resist the lure of mercury
Mercury is one of the world's 10 deadliest chemicals – once extracted from the Earth's crust, it can take centuries to break down. In 2013, more than 100 countries signed up to the Minamata convention, committing to restrict its production, export and use, and phase it out altogether. Yet while Latin American countries claim to have ended production of the toxic element and controlled its movement across borders, they have simply driven the trade underground. A new report from the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) has found that mercury production is 'out of control' in Mexico – the world's second largest producer – driven by high gold prices and cartel involvement. Through illicit networks, mercury is being smuggled into South American countries including Colombia, Bolivia and Peru. There, it fuels a gold rush in the Amazon, contaminating rivers, soil and air, and causing severe environmental and social damage. With gold prices at record highs, the mercury trade has become so lucrative that one of Mexico's deadliest cartels has entered the business. Traffickers are smuggling the substance abroad, into tropical forests in large quantities. 'It is absurd that mercury is one of the 10 most toxic substances in the world – yet smugglers are shipping tonnes of it out of major ports without detection just by hiding it in gravel,' says Adam Dolezal, investigations coordinator at the EIA. Over the past decade, illegal mining has soared, creating an environmental crisis. Mounting evidence of a public health catastrophe has led world leaders to agree on phasing out mercury production and banning its export for goldmining. Mexican documents sent to the UN reported a decline in domestic mercury production from 442 tonnes in 2018 to zero in 2020, when the last mines were shut down. But EIA undercover investigators tracked 200 tonnes of mercury from the rainforests of the Amazon, thousands of miles away, to the dusty hills of northern Querétaro between 2019 and 2025. The EIA team identified at least 19 active mines in Querétaro, producing 100 tonnes a year, with no health, safety or environmental oversight. Investigators discovered that the illegal industry not only polluted rainforests but also one of Mexico's most biodiverse regions: the Sierra Gorda biosphere reserve. 'It's a Unesco-protected site that is home to a third of the country's butterfly species, yet mining is daily, largely unregulated, and contaminating rivers used by at least 17 downstream communities. Some soils have mercury levels up to 150 times the safe limit,' Dolezal says. By conservative estimates, mercury from these mines could have produced up to $8bn (£6bn) in illegal gold, and has attracted the attention of Mexican cartels, according to the report. Although the full extent of cartel involvement is unclear, the message to investigators was obvious. 'The Jalisco New Generation cartel exerts a high degree of control in some of the mines,' Dolezal says. 'Our team documented armed control points, surveillance towers and threats of violence. Cartel involvement has industrialised production and in some mines, where mercury is not processed on-site, ore is trucked out in bulk under cartel control.' The investigation led to the seizure of a five-tonne shipment of mercury hidden in gravel bags at the Peruvian port of Callao – the largest ever confiscated in an Amazonian country. The haul revealed the scale of the trade and how easily criminal networks move the toxic chemical abroad. Sign up to Global Dispatch Get a different world view with a roundup of the best news, features and pictures, curated by our global development team after newsletter promotion Authorities, often more focused on halting the flow of cocaine through Latin America, would probably not have detected the illegal mercury shipment without the EIA tip, says Luis E Fernández, executive director of the Center for Amazonian Scientific Innovation (Cincia), which joined the operation. Once across the border, criminal organisations extract the mercury from rock before sending it to the Amazon. In Colombia, the business is controlled by the same armed groups that run gold trafficking. Unlike deforestation, which leaves visible scars, mercury pollution is invisible. Starting as a grey sludge, it travels undetected for hundreds of kilometres in rivers. Indigenous groups, including the Yanomami in Brazil, suspect the toxin has disrupted the rainforest's balance. Their first warning was dead fish washing up, threatening their food supply. Later, they noticed an increase in the number of babies born with missing limbs and developmental problems. Now, they realise they are victims of vast mercury dumping into their rivers. 'We don't know the full effect, but we know there is no cure,' says Dario Kopenawa Yanomami. 'Experts have already told us the mercury will remain in the water and soil for at least 10 years. It's very worrying.' Illegal mining in the Amazon has risen by 50% in six years (between 2018 and 2024), and experts consider its impact devastating for the world's most biodiverse ecosystems. A study in Yanomami territory found that local communities are highly exposed to mercury through fish consumption, according to safety levels established by the World Health Organization. These communities rely on fish as their primary source of protein. Although species low on the food chain may contain traces of the toxin, predators that eat hundreds or thousands of fish annually concentrate it at dangerous levels. The toxic metal is especially harmful to children, causing neurological disorders, learning disabilities, and visual and motor problems. The same study found mercury present hundreds of kilometres upstream from the mines, suggesting even isolated groups are being poisoned. 'Illegal goldmining is one of the greatest evils that afflict riverside communities and Indigenous populations in South America,' says Antenor Vaz, a specialist at an Indigenous people's rights group, who was not involved in the report. 'The indiscriminate use of liquid mercury contaminates numerous waterways, the food chain from these waters and all the populations that depend on this source of food and water.' Unless Latin American countries take the international mercury trade seriously, it will not stop, the report's authors say. They call on Mexican authorities to regain control of Querétaro's mines from organised crime and shut them down, and urge greater information sharing, the use of artificial intelligence to combat smuggling and the closing of loopholes in the Minamata convention. 'The silence or absence of states in fighting these crimes does not mean neutrality,' Vaz says. 'It means complicity.'
The Mainichi
29-05-2025
- Health
- The Mainichi
Japan's Niigata governor criticizes incorrect 'hereditary' description of Minamata disease
NIIGATA -- Niigata Gov. Hideyo Hanazumi expressed his displeasure over an incorrect description of Minamata disease mercury poisoning in an online teaching material by a major home tutoring operator, which stated, "The terrifying fact about Minamata disease is that it's hereditary." Hanazumi called the account in the material published by Trygroup Inc. "a clear mistake and extremely regrettable" during a regular news conference May 28. Although the company has acknowledged the error and taken down the material, the prefectural government plans to address the issue while working with Kumamoto Prefecture, home to the first reported case of the industrial pollution-derived disease and where patients and victims are located. The teaching material, aimed at junior high school students, described cases in which children developed Minamata disease at birth after being affected through their mother's placenta as "hereditary." On May 14, the Ministry of the Environment pointed out the error to the company, and the material was removed May 22. Hanazumi called the mistake "a case that must not happen" and stated that he would closely monitor the Environment Ministry's response, including reports on how the error occurred and measures to prevent a recurrence. Touching on that this year marks the 60th anniversary of the official recognition of Niigata Minamata disease, the governor added, "It is important to convey the facts, history and lessons of Minamata disease. Renewed efforts are necessary." (Japanese original by Noriaki Kinoshita, Niigata Bureau)
Asahi Shimbun
26-05-2025
- Health
- Asahi Shimbun
Apology issued over false lesson on Minamata disease ‘gene'
Trygroup Inc. has removed this false information about Minamata disease. (Captured from Trygroup Inc.'s online education material) After repeated government requests, a home tutoring company apologized for wrongly teaching children that Minamata disease, a neurological disorder caused by mercury poisoning, is hereditary. Trygroup Inc., known for its 'Katei Kyoushi no Try' education service, issued the apology on its website and removed the false information that was presented during an online lecture for junior high school students. 'Minamata-byou Higaisha, Shiensha Renraku Kai,' a group of Minamata disease patients and their supporters, learned about erroneous lecture at the end of April. The group, saying such false information promotes discrimination against Minamata disease victims, asked the Environment Ministry to take action. The group also sent a request to Trygroup to correct its educational materials. According to the group, Trygroup's video lecture was for a junior high school history class as part of its 'Try I' service. The topics in the lecture were the four major pollution-caused illnesses in Japan. 'The most horrible aspect of this (Minamata) disease is its hereditary nature,' the lecture said. 'Pregnant women who developed the disease often passed it on to their babies.' Minamata disease was discovered in the 1950s among residents who consumed marine products tainted with organic mercury discharged from a chemical factory into Minamata Bay, Kumamoto Prefecture. Babies born with the disease were affected by the mercury while in the wombs of their mothers. The disease is not passed down through genes. However, incorrect beliefs about the disease have spread, leading to discrimination against victims of the poisoning and their relatives. Some have been rejected for marriage based only on where they were born. 'There are still patients who suffer from misconceptions and discrimination,' said Ichiro Motoshima, an official of the patients and supporters group. 'The central government should thoroughly educate people to understand the facts.' The Environment Ministry said it sent a request for a correction to Trygroup on May 14, and the company partly corrected the lecture. But the ministry deemed that measure was insufficient and had continued contacting Trygroup until it issued the apology for its false lecture. 'There is no fact that Minamata disease is hereditary. We apologize for the incorrect expression and have corrected that part,' the company said on its website on May 23. The ministry intends to continue seeking an explanation from the company. Similar false information was also spread earlier this year by the city government of Uki in Kumamoto Prefecture A calendar that the municipality distributed to all 23,000 households in Uki at the end of February contained a description that could be interpreted as: 'Minamata and Hansen's diseases are infectious.' The city has since circulated a correction seal for the description to all households and apologized. Minamata disease is not infectious. But in the initial period after its discovery, the cause of the disease was unknown, leading to the mistaken belief that it could be spread from human to human. Hansen's disease, more commonly known as leprosy, has an extremely low level of contagiousness. Currently, it is very rare for a person to become infected with and develop Hansen's disease.
Kyodo News
25-05-2025
- Health
- Kyodo News
Kyodo News Digest: May 25, 2025
KYODO NEWS - 1 hour ago - 15:03 | All, World, Japan The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News. ---------- Japan PM vows better treatment of SDF staff amid security challenges TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba pledged Sunday to improve the treatment and working conditions of Self-Defense Forces members tasked with serving in an increasingly challenging security climate. During a roundtable with young personnel at a district-level command of the Maritime Self-Defense Force in Kyoto Prefecture, Ishiba said, "We must treat you appropriately as you strive to carry out your duties regardless of the risks." ---------- Japan sets rules on name readings to curb flashy "kirakira names" TOKYO - Japan will impose rules on Monday on how children's names in Chinese characters are pronounced, amid growing concern over what are known as "kirakira names" -- flashy or unusual readings that have stirred debate. The move is part of the enforcement of a revised law requiring all names in the national family registry to include phonetic readings, which will effectively ban interpretations considered too disconnected from the characters used. ---------- Major Japan tutoring firm sorry for false claim on Minamata disease KUMAMOTO, Japan - A major Japanese tutoring company has recently apologized for inaccurately describing the Minamata mercury-poisoning disease as hereditary in its online study material, a description that drew strong public criticism. The false claim appeared in a video lesson for junior high school students from the firm's "Try IT" online service, which explained cases of infants developing the disease via mercury exposure through the placenta but wrongly called the condition "inherited." ---------- Japan to increase salaries of chefs at diplomatic missions TOKYO - Japan's government plans to improve working conditions for chefs at its overseas diplomatic missions due to intensifying competition for talent as the nation's cuisine grows in popularity worldwide. More than 6 million yen ($41,000) will be paid annually to chefs under the new scheme slated to start in January, up from the current average of around 4 to 4.5 million yen, according to the Foreign Ministry. ---------- Octogenarians in Philippines given Japan citizenship meet Okinawa kin LINAPACAN, Philippines - Two sisters in their 80s of Japanese descent in the Philippines who had been stateless before being granted citizenship from Japan last year met with their Japanese relatives for the first time Sunday. The meeting between Esperanza Morine Cabrillos, 87, and Lydia Morine Galalan, 85, and their relatives from their Japanese father's side came as this year marked the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and eight months after they were recognized as Japanese nationals. ---------- Drug suspect attempts to flee police custody as officer dozes YOKOHAMA - A man suspected of possessing stimulant drugs fled a police station in Kawasaki near Tokyo while a police officer dozed in an interrogation room on Saturday, but he was swiftly recaptured, police said. Kohei Takai, 32, was caught after fleeing on a street about 200 meters from Kawasaki Police Station around at 9:35 a.m. He had been served an arrest warrant over the possession of stimulant drugs earlier. ---------- Baseball: Shohei Ohtani likely to return to mound after All-Star break NEW YORK - Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani's return to the mound is likely to be after the All-Star break, manager Dave Roberts said Saturday. Ohtani is scheduled to face batters Sunday for the first time since elbow surgery in September 2023. ---------- Swarming insects causing distress at World Exposition in Osaka OSAKA - Swarms of midges have become a headache at the World Exposition in Osaka, causing visitors to cringe and raising concerns about possible health issues. The small flies have been found on walls and the pillars of the wooden Grand Ring encircling many of the pavilions, with people forced to fight them off to avoid swallowing them. Video: Festival to introduce Japanese sake takes place in Seoul
Japan Times
01-05-2025
- Health
- Japan Times
Victims mourned 69 years after Minamata disease recognition
Hundreds of people prayed for the victims of Minamata disease in a ceremony in southwestern Japan on Thursday, 69 years after the neurological disorder caused by polluted industrial wastewater was officially recognized. Some 660 people, including patients, bereaved families, Environment Minister Keiichiro Asao and Keizo Yamada, president of Chisso Corp., which released the wastewater, attended the ceremony in Minamata, a city in Kumamoto Prefecture. Minoru Sugimoto, a 58-year-old local resident whose grandparents and parents were recognized as patients, said in a speech that they did not hate people or look sad even when they were discriminated against after developing symptoms. "The whole family must have overcome the suffering and sorrow together," he said, voicing hope that his grandchildren will remember happy memories about the sea when they grow up. "We once again apologize for not being able to prevent the spread of Minamata disease," Asao said in the ceremony. "We should not repeat the disastrous pollution like Minamata disease again." At a meeting last year, an Environment Ministry official cut off the microphone to interrupt patients' remarks, causing an uproar. The then-environment minister traveled to Minamata later again to apologize. There were 2,284 certified patients of Minamata disease in Kumamoto Prefecture and neighboring Kagoshima Prefecture as of the end of March, while 1,271 others had applied for certification.
