Brazil: Scientists find heavy metals in food grown on soil from the Rio Doce estuary, an area affected by the Samarco dam collapse in 2015
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"Hidden Risk in a Common Fruit: Bananas Contaminated by Mining Disaster", 09 February 2026
...A team of researchers in soil geochemistry, environmental engineering, and health from the University of São Paulo (USP), the Federal University of Espírito Santo (UFES), and the University of Santiago de Compostela examined the potential health risks linked to eating bananas, cassava, and cocoa pulp grown in contaminated soils in the Doce River estuary in Linhares, in the Brazilian state of Espírito Santo.
These soils have been affected by iron mining waste that began accumulating in the region after the Fundão tailings dam collapsed in the neighboring state of Minas Gerais in November 2015.
The scientists found that the soils contain elevated levels of cadmium, chromium, copper, nickel, and lead, elements closely associated with iron oxides, which make up the bulk of the tailings material. Their analysis also showed that eating bananas grown in these impacted soils could pose a health risk for young children aged six years or younger...
In a study published in Environmental Geochemistry and Health, the researchers describe how crops absorb potentially toxic elements (PTEs) linked to the tailings and store them in edible tissues, allowing contaminants to move through the food chain...
According to Duim, the study’s lead author, the research stands out because it directly links potential risks to human health with how potentially toxic elements move from contaminated soil into plants. “The iron oxide content in the soil, which is the main constituent of the tailings, correlates with its content in the plant. We studied the passage of constituents from the tailings in the soil to the water, and then from the water to the plant, including its leaves and fruits”...
The group warns that continued consumption of food grown in contaminated soil may pose cumulative risks in the long term...
These mutations have the potential to result in a higher incidence of various types of cancer, including those affecting the central nervous system, gastrointestinal tract, and hematological system...