Gold Mining Rages Across Amazon, Devastating Indigenous Communities

Gold mining is expanding at an alarming rate in Brazil's Amazon region, particularly on Indigenous lands. According to a new analysis by the Amazon Environmental Research Institute (IPAM), the area affected by gold mining across the Amazon was 20 times larger in 2024 than in 1985. On Indigenous lands, mining covered 24 times as much land and expanded nearly sevenfold between 2016 and 2024.

The surge in gold prices has driven a renewed mining rush, leading to increased deforestation and mercury contamination of rivers and Indigenous communities. IPAM warns that this is aggravating the climate risks facing these communities, which are already threatened by extreme weather events, droughts, and heat.

Almost 90% of the affected area is concentrated in three territories, including the Munduruku Indigenous Territory. Representatives from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights recently visited the territory to assess Brazil's compliance with measures recommended to protect Indigenous communities' rights.