Toxic Foam Pollutes Tiete River in Brazil’s Sao Paulo State

Toxic foam covered the Tiete River in Brazil this week. The foamy sludge is made up of runoff and chemicals that have been collecting upriver for months. When a hydroelectric company recently opened a dam’s floodgates, it released all that accumulated pollution downstream. The foam clogged waterways and killed aquatic life, including thousands of fish. There are also fears that the foam may cause respiratory ailments for people living along the Tiete.