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Q59 (IAS/2023) Environment & Ecology › Pollution & Conservation › Hazardous chemical pollutants Official Key

Consider the following statements regarding mercury pollution : 1. Gold mining activity is a source of mercury pollution in the world. 2. Coal-based thermal power plants cause mercury pollution. 3. There is no known safe level of exposure to mercury. How many of the above statements are correct?

Result
Your answer: —  ·  Correct: B
Explanation

The correct answer is Option 2 (Only two). While all three statements are often debated in environmental contexts, the standard scientific and regulatory consensus for this specific question identifies only two statements as definitively correct based on prevailing assessments.

  • Statement 1 is correct: Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is the largest global source of anthropogenic mercury emissions. Mercury is used to extract gold by forming an amalgam, which is then heated, releasing toxic vapors into the atmosphere.
  • Statement 2 is correct: Coal naturally contains trace amounts of mercury. When burned in thermal power plants, this mercury is released into the air, making coal combustion a major industrial source of mercury pollution.
  • Statement 3 is generally considered incorrect in a regulatory context: While mercury is highly toxic, international bodies like the WHO and FAO establish "Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intake" (PTWI) levels. Unlike lead or radiation, where it is often stated there is "no safe level," mercury has defined threshold limits for human exposure, though these are extremely low.

Therefore, since only statements 1 and 2 are unequivocally accepted as correct sources/facts, Option 2 is the right choice.

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PROVENANCE & STUDY PATTERN
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Don’t just practise – reverse-engineer the question. This panel shows where this PYQ came from (books / web), how the examiner broke it into hidden statements, and which nearby micro-concepts you were supposed to learn from it. Treat it like an autopsy of the question: what might have triggered it, which exact lines in the book matter, and what linked ideas you should carry forward to future questions.
Q. Consider the following statements regarding mercury pollution : 1. Gold mining activity is a source of mercury pollution in the world. …
At a glance
Origin: Books + Current Affairs Fairness: Moderate fairness Books / CA: 6.7/10 · 3.3/10
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Statements 1 and 2 are standard static knowledge found in Shankar IAS under the Minamata Convention. Statement 3 is the differentiator—it is a verbatim 'Key Fact' from the WHO website. The strategy is to couple textbook convention details with the 'Health Impact' summaries of major pollutants from WHO/UNEP.

How this question is built

This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.

Statement 1
Is gold mining activity a source of global mercury pollution?
Origin: Direct from books Fairness: Straightforward Book-answerable
From standard books
Environment, Shankar IAS Acedemy .(ed 10th) > Chapter 28: International Organisation and Conventions > The Minamata Convention requires that parties nations: > p. 411
Presence: 5/5
“The Minamata Convention requires that party nations: • Reduce and where feasible eliminate the use and release of mercury from artisanal and small-scale gold mining. • Control mercury air emissions from coal-fired power plants, coal-fired industrial boilers, certain non-ferrous metals production operations, waste incineration, and cement production. 0 • r Phase-out or take measures to reduce mercury use in certain products such as batteries, switches, lights, cosmetics, pesticides and measuring devices, and create initiatives to reduce the use of mercury in dental amalgam. • r Phase out or reduce the use of mercury in manufacturing processes such as chlor-alkali production, vinyl chloride Inonomer production, and acetaldehyde Production The Minamata Convention entered into force on August 27.”
Why this source?
  • The Minamata Convention explicitly targets artisanal and small‑scale gold mining for reduction/elimination of mercury use and release.
  • Inclusion in an international treaty signals recognition of ASGM as a significant source of mercury pollution.
Environment, Shankar IAS Acedemy .(ed 10th) > Chapter 29: Environment Issues and Health Effects > c) Itaiitai disease > p. 416
Presence: 4/5
“• Itai-itai disease was the documented case of mercury poisoning in Toyama prefecture, Japan, starting around 1958. • The mercury poisoning caused softening of the bones and kidney failure. • The mercury was released into rivers by mining companies in the mountains. The mining companies were successfully sued for the damage.”
Why this source?
  • Documents a historical case where mining companies released mercury into rivers causing severe mercury poisoning.
  • Demonstrates that mining activities can directly contaminate water and cause human health impacts.
Science , class X (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 3: Metals and Non-metals > 3.4.3 Extracting Metals Low in the Activity Series > p. 51
Presence: 4/5
“Metals low in the activity series are very unreactive. The oxides of these metals can be reduced to metals by heating alone. For example, cinnabar (HgS) is an ore of mercury. When it is heated in air, it is first converted into mercuric oxide (HgO). Mercuric oxide is then reduced to mercury on further heating.”
Why this source?
  • Identifies cinnabar (HgS) as a mercury ore and describes thermal processing that yields elemental mercury.
  • Shows that extraction and processing of mercury‑bearing ores is a pathway by which mining generates mercury.
Statement analysis

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Statement analysis

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