Amazon 
Environment 
Trade 
National During the end-of-year festivities, tourists visiting Alter do Chão, in Pará, were surprised by murky and muddy waters. Residents and tourism agencies fear that the pollution could be caused by toxic materials dumped by illegal mining in the middle course of the Tapajós.
Known as the Amazonian Caribbean, the Alter do Chão region depends on tourism. Residents report that the river’s waters were muddy only during periods of more intense rains, but that the advance of mining has reduced the “window of clear water”, which can be catastrophic for local businesses.
Illegal mining has been present in the Tapajós since at least the 1980s. However, the activity has intensified in recent years, with backhoe loaders that facilitate the turning of land on the banks of rivers. According to a survey carried out in December by Greenpeace, illegal mining destroyed 632 kilometers of rivers in the Tapajós river region.
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