When the couple posted a video of it on Instagram, Internet users reacted angrily, with many blaming the couple for allegedly polluting the water. SUPPLIED

A couple is facing public backlash after dyeing a waterfall in Brazil for their gender reveal party, which possibly contaminated a nearby town's water supply. The Cachoeira Queima-Pé, a 59-foot-tall waterfall in Mato Grosso, Brazil, was polluted when a couple used it as the venue for their gender reveal celebration when they poured blue dye over its crystal waters to indicate that they were expecting a baby boy. When the couple posted a video of it on Instagram, Internet users reacted angrily, with many blaming the couple for allegedly putting polluting substances in the water. The video was later removed from the platform, but copies had already been distributed. The Brazilian environment ministry learned about the couple's actions toward the ecological tourist attraction, which is frequently used as a water supply by the adjacent town during droughts, and has opened an investigation into them. According to a spokeswoman for Mato Grosso's environmental protection department, pouring dye on the waterfall constituted a breach of Brazilian federal environmental law. While the sanctions are still being considered, the anonymous family member responsible for the stunt will be charged with harming the environment. Throwing "solid, liquid, or gaseous leftovers or trash, oils or oily substances" into the environment is a crime in Brazil, punishable by a fine of 5,000 to 50,000 reals (P50,000 - P500,000). Fortunately, when the agency sent a team to inspect the waterfall after the occurrence, they discovered "no change in the water’s physical parameters, such as color and other, and no trace of local fish mortality." BKM/ Expat Media
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