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Bees and the Environmental Impact of the Rupture of the Fundão Dam
Author(s) -
Vieira Kamilla Ingred Castelan,
Werneck Hugo de Azevedo,
Santos Júnior José Eustáquio dos,
Flores Dienny Sthefani da Silva,
Serrão José Eduardo,
Campos Lucio Antônio de Oliveira,
Resende Helder Canto
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
integrated environmental assessment and management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.665
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1551-3793
pISSN - 1551-3777
DOI - 10.1002/ieam.4288
Subject(s) - pollen , tailings , tailings dam , species richness , environmental science , ecology , diversity (politics) , geography , toxicology , environmental protection , biology , chemistry , sociology , anthropology
The environmental consequences associated with the Fundão tailings dam failure in Mariana, Minas Gerais, Brazil on 5 November 2015 are still being investigated. Bees are the main pollinators believed to be most affected by the accident because they occur throughout the area affected by the dam rupture and build their nests in the soil. In this study, we evaluated the richness of different bee species in areas affected and not affected by the accident and measured the concentration of different metals on the pollen basket, or corbicula, located on the hind legs of Apis mellifera . Diversity indices were similar and there was no statistical difference in the diversity of bees sampled when comparing the sites affected and not affected by the tailings mud, either before or after the dam rupture. It is possible that the similarity is due to nearby forests that may be serving as areas of refuge. The levels of Al, Cu, Cd, Hg, and Pb in A. mellifera suggest no change in the level of metals in pollen collected by the bees that can be attributed to the rupture of the dam. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2020;16:631–635. © 2020 SETAC