In an October 11, 2011 article the Mongabay reported that the climbing price of gold on international markets has triggered substantial increase in rainforest destruction in the Peruvian Amazon.
The article points out that while gold mining in the Amazon is probably older even than the Incas, the use of motorized equipment for forest clearing is relatively new, leading to rapid and large scale deforestation around gold mines, visible even from outer space.
Rocketing gold prices of recent years make gold mining more profitable than virtually any other work, especially for unskilled labor. To avoid competition, miners have spread out from traditional mining areas, reaching further into the rainforest, often starting operations before acquiring necessary environmental permissions. Approximately 200 migrants a day flow into the region to engage in gold mining activities.
The situation got so serious that the Environmental Ministry is close to declaring an environmental emergency in the region although the failure of similar emergency measures passed two years ago questions the government’s ability to effectively address the crisis.
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| Aerial photo of a gold mine in the Peruvian Amazon Source: mongabay.com |
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