In the Heart of the Brazilian AmazonIn 1992, the year in which The Earth Summit was held in Rio de Janeiro, I went on assignment deep in the Amazon rain forest to cover a serious environmental problem that had begun to set off alarms of an Amazonian version of Minamata disease. That sickness is caused by mercury poisoning and was first identified 36 years earlier in Japan. 道もない密林をボートで移動し、たどり着いた場所は銃を身に付けた男たちが目を光らせる西部劇のような無法地帯。体験したことがない熱帯雨林の気候は脳みそが溶けるかと思うほど蒸し暑く眠れず、朝まで水シャワーを浴び続けて何とか正気を保っていました。
Moving through the dense, roadless forest by boat, our destination, full of men openly carrying guns, revealed itself as a scene reminiscent of some lawless territory in a Hollywood western. Beyond that seemingly anachronistic first impression, it was brain-melting heat and humidity that dominated my first experience with the tropical rain forest. My sanity survived only with repeated cold showers through sleepless nights.
当時、アマゾンで採れる砂金の精製には水銀が使用されていました。その現状を捉えた映像は日本のプライムタイムのニュース番組でシリーズとして放送され、地球の裏側で密かに進行する環境問題の深刻さを伝えることができました。
The story our crew went to cover was the use of mercury to extract gold from sands in the deepest part of the Amazon. The video we created was eventually broadcast as a series on a Japanese prime-time news program. and I was happy that we were able to help inform the Japanese public about a serious environmental problem developing with little attention at all on the other side of the world.
Moving through the dense, roadless forest by boat, our destination, full of men openly carrying guns, revealed itself as a scene reminiscent of some lawless territory in a Hollywood western. Beyond that seemingly anachronistic first impression, it was brain-melting heat and humidity that dominated my first experience with the tropical rain forest. My sanity survived only with repeated cold showers through sleepless nights. The story our crew went to cover was the use of mercury to extract gold from sands in the deepest part of the Amazon. The video we created was eventually broadcast as a series on a Japanese prime-time news program. and I was happy that we were able to help inform the Japanese public about a serious environmental problem developing with little attention at all on the other side of the world. |
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Deep in the Amazon, cut off from Tokyo and New York
Illegal gold mining in the Brazilian Amazon near the border with Bolivia
Hugged by a Furry Stranger
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Sitting in the shade of a tree to gain some relief from the oppressive heat, I suddenly felt something warm hugging me from behind. Looking back to see who this might be, I was surprised to find a wild monkey no more than about 30 centimeters tall. Amid days spent focused on serious environmental problems, that magical encounter was both heartwarming and a reminder that much of the Amazon’s natural environment remained.