The estimate was confirmed by a mission of Amapá Civil Police, who visited some of the 520 mines in the region. The rising price of gold in the international market is what drives these Brazilians going abroad in search of metal.
Related Posts
New study suggests that mercury contamination is widespread among residents of the Amazon
March 17, 2022
Although living 186 miles away from the area along the Tapajós River where illegal mining is concentrated, Santarém's inhabitants are at high risk of mercury poisoning.
Global demand for manganese puts Kayapó Indigenous land under pressure
June 9, 2021
Amazônia Minada project finds unusual rise in demand for manganese in 2020, when it became the second most requested on indigenous lands - just after gold. Some of the richest manganese deposits in the world are in southeast Pará, overlapping with the territories of the Kayapó, the most affected by recent records in mining requests. Illegal mining has increased and Indigenous people denounce mining on their territories.
Pulitzer Center: Like Butterflies in the Jungle: The Quest for the New El Dorado
July 21, 2014
In French Guiana, some 15,000 wildcat miners armed with diesel engines, hydraulic equipment, guns, and not a small supply of sugarcane liquor were hacking into the European Union’s sole rain forest.