EIA report links illegal mercury trafficking to Amazon deforestation, pollution crisis
By Faridat Salifu
A new report by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA US) has exposed a massive illicit trade in mercury from mines in Mexico to gold mining operations in Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru, driving deforestation, ecosystem damage, and widespread mercury contamination in the Amazon.
According to the report, titled “Traffickers Leave No Stone Unturned,” about 200 tons of mercury have been trafficked from Mexico since April 2019, much of it sourced from within the Sierra Gorda UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.
This mercury, used primarily in artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM), has been tied to the production of an estimated $8 billion worth of illegal gold and is fueling mercury pollution in the Amazon region.
EIA’s investigation shows that the smuggling network intersects with organised criminal groups in both Mexico and Colombia, including the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, which allegedly controls some mercury sources.
Peru’s customs agency, SUNAT, acting on EIA intelligence, seized 4 tons of mercury in June 2025—the largest-ever seizure in an Amazonian country—on its way to gold operations in Bolivia.
The seized shipment, carried by Ocean Network Express on a Hapag Lloyd vessel, marks a rare enforcement success but also highlights enforcement gaps in the Minamata Convention on Mercury, which aims to phase out mercury use globally.
Mercury is used by illegal miners to extract gold from sediment by forming an amalgam, which is then burned, releasing toxic vapors and leaving behind gold—an outdated method that is now the largest source of mercury pollution worldwide.
According to the United Nations, ASGM emits over 800 tons of mercury annually, contaminating rivers, forests, and food chains, with severe health consequences for Indigenous communities across the Amazon.
Recent studies show gold mining-related deforestation in the Amazon exceeded 2 million hectares by 2024, with over a third occurring in protected areas and Indigenous territories like those of the Yanomami, Munduruku, and Kayapó peoples.
The EIA notes that high global gold prices—driven in part by geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China—have intensified illegal mining and smuggling since 2023, raising the value of mercury to over $330 per kilogram in 2025.
EIA Executive Director Alexander von Bismarck warned that the current tolerance for illegal mercury flows is unsustainable, saying: “It is time to challenge this status quo that affects Amazonian communities and benefits organised criminals.”
The group is calling for reforms at the upcoming sixth Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention in November 2025, including closing mercury mines, removing ASGM exemptions, and strengthening enforcement against illicit trade.
The report adds pressure on the Mexican government, where mercury mining—though officially restricted—continues under weak enforcement and fuels one of the world’s largest illegal environmental trade flows.
