A/HRC/57/47 well-being of Indigenous Peoples, in particular those who rely on medicine and healing for the treatment of impairments.84 71. The vulnerability of persons with disabilities to the adverse effects of climate change necessitates inclusive policies to mitigate its effects and prevent discrimination. Conservation efforts should also prioritize accessibility and inclusivity for Indigenous persons with disabilities. 85 Climate change creates unique challenges for Indigenous persons with psychosocial disabilities and climate emergencies also increase stress, erode mental health and lead to post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety disorders and depression.86 72. Moreover, extractive projects frequently occur on or near Indigenous lands, causing unsafe exposure to toxic substances that affect Indigenous persons with disabilities in particular. At least 34 per cent of all documented environmental conflicts worldwide affect Indigenous Peoples. Compounding this issue is the fact that Indigenous Peoples typically have a closer relationship to the land that they occupy than non-Indigenous people; therefore, modern industrial developments and the extraction of natural resources have a disproportionate impact on Indigenous People’s physical and mental well-being. 87 For example, aerial spraying with the herbicide glyphosate in Argentina, Brazil and Colombia is directly linked to intellectual and physical disabilities in Indigenous Peoples. As Indigenous Peoples in these countries live in and around rural areas where the chemicals are sprayed, they are at a greater risk of impairments caused by exposure to glyphosate. In Colombia, Indigenous mothers have reported that their children’s impairments are directly linked to exposure to glyphosate. Multiple cases of births of children with disabilities after the exposure of their pregnant mothers to the pesticide have been reported. 88 Exposure to contaminated water, soil and food, as well as toxic waste, is directly linked to high numbers of persons with disabilities in Indigenous communities. It has been brought to the Special Rapporteur’s attention that lead poisoning from extractive industries has caused neurological impairments in Indigenous children.89 These impairments, in interaction with attitudinal and environmental barriers, lead to high numbers of persons with disabilities among Indigenous Peoples. 73. Indigenous persons with disabilities in the Asia and the Pacific and Latin America are directly and disproportionately affected by exposure to hazardous waste from extractive industries and agrochemicals, as well as natural disasters.90 Even in Indigenous nations that are not near extractive sites, chemicals from extractive sites pollute rainwater that contaminates agricultural areas and causes illness and impairments that, in interaction with attitudinal and environmental barriers, lead to high numbers of persons with disabilities among Indigenous Peoples. 74. In some States, Indigenous Peoples experience mercury poisoning at much higher rates than their non-Indigenous counterparts. Exposure to contamination from extractive industries often leads to neurological impairments. In his report on his visit to Canada, the Special Rapporteur expressed concern about the devastating intergenerational consequences of decades of mercury contamination on the Grassy Narrows First Nation, in particular with regard to children, who experience seizures, speech impairments and intellectual disabilities.91 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 GE.24-12379 Ibid. Submission from the Ministry of Social and Economic Inclusion, the Ministry of Public Health and the National Council for Disability Equality of Ecuador. Submission from Canada. Arnim Scheidel and others, “Global impacts of extractive and industrial development projects on Indigenous Peoples’ lifeways, lands, and rights”, Science Advances, vol. 9, No. 23 (June 2023). Submission from the Center for Reproductive Rights. See https://phys.org/news/2021-06-high-blood-indigenous-peoples-peruvian.html. See https://cendoc.docip.org/collect/cendocdo/index/assoc/HASH01c0/6ff3dd04.dir/PF12IPUL144.pdf. A/HRC/54/31/Add.2, para. 57. 15