In this short 2018 video Molly Leblanc, a species at risk and biodiversity biologist with Coastal Action, talks about the roughly one million ounces of mercury left behind by mining companies in Nova Scotia, typically dumped in nearby wetlands.
Of 64 historical gold mine districts — each of which can contain dozens of individual mines — only 18 districts have been analyzed for mercury and arsenic accumulation in living things, the study found. There are more than 360 individual mines across the 64 districts.
The province experienced waves of gold rushes dating back to the 1860s that left a legacy of mercury and arsenic contamination.
Mercury was used to separate gold from crushed ore, and the waste from that process was usually dumped in nearby bodies of water. Arsenic, a naturally occurring mineral, was released into the environment as part of the mining process.