Brazil's Amazon Gold Rush Devastates Indigenous Lands

Gold mining is expanding at an alarming rate in the Brazilian Amazon, particularly on Indigenous lands. According to a new analysis by the nonprofit Amazon Environmental Research Institute (IPAM), the area affected by gold mining across the Amazon was 20 times larger in 2024 than in 1985.

In fact, mining on Indigenous lands grew even faster, covering 24 times as much land between 1985 and 2024. The growth was particularly dramatic between 2016 and 2024 alone, with an almost sevenfold increase.

The surge in gold prices, driven by investor demand for safe assets amid rising global risks, has fueled a renewed mining rush in the Amazon. This has led to record-breaking deforestation and mercury contamination of riverine and Indigenous communities.

IPAM warned that mining is aggravating the climate risks facing Indigenous communities, which are already vulnerable due to extreme weather events driven by human activities.