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Gold mining in the Peruvian Amazon

65 images Created 25 Jul 2017

Mining in the Peruvian Amazon

The Amazon is the largest tropical forest in the world. Peruvian Amazon has one of the most biodiverse natural reserves in the world and it has started to become a desert. This environmental disaster occurs majorly for illegal mining that is deforesting the area to look for gold in the beds of the rivers.

Mercury is used each year to extract the prized gold, and a large proportion pollutes rivers. Mercury poisons those people engaged in this activity and nearby populations.

The work is hard, the miners work shifts of 24 hours, without a fixed payment, at the end of the day they distribute in equal parts the gold they gather, at most from 4 to 6 grams per day.

The Peruvian government has tried to control the sale of fuel and mercury, supplies needed to extract gold, but illegal miners find a way to smuggle them.

Minería en el Amazonas

La selva amazónica es el bosque tropical más extenso del mundo. Se considera que su extensión llega a los 6 millones de kilómetros cuadrados repartidos entre nueve países, de los cuales Perú y Brasil poseen la mayor extensión.

Y es en Perú donde se encuentra una de las reservas naturales con mayor biodiversidad del mundo y esta ha empezado a convertirse en un desierto, este desastre ambiental que ocurre en la Reserva Nacional de Tambopata, ubicada en Madre de Dios, se debe a la agricultura pero principalmente por la minería ilegal que deforesta la zona para buscar oro en los lechos de los ríos.

Además toneladas de mercurio son usadas cada año para extraer el oro, contaminando los ríos y envenenando a los que se dedican a esta actividad y a las poblaciones cercanas.

Pero el trabajo es duro, los mineros trabajan turnos de 24 horas, sin un pago fijo, al final de la jornada se reparten en partes iguales el oro que logran reunir, a lo mucho de 4 a 6 gramos por día.

La actividad minera ha fundado pueblos, mantiene a familias completas, han dado educación a sus hijos llevando profesores a lugares lejanos.

El gobierno de Perú en un intento de controlar la actividad minera ha declarado ilegal la venta de combustible y mercurio, insumos necesarios para extraer oro, pero los mineros ilegales encuentran la forma de conseguirlos por contrabando. También realizan operaciones para destruir los motores y máquinas usadas en la minería ilegal, esto el ha permitido al gobierno desarmar cientos de campamentos de mineros ilegales.

Un estudio publicado muestra que la minería está deforestando a Madre Dios a mayor velocidad que cualquier otra actividad, y predice que esta situación empeorará.

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  • A miner controls a machine built to suck and expel mud from a hole in the jungle, this mud carries gold that after a day's work is collected with carpets.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-01.jpg
  • Los mineros talan árboles para despejar el area e inundar agujeros para extraer el oro de la tierra con una máquina en Boca Colorado, Perú.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-02.jpg
  • Fire to burn small vegetation before cutting down trees to broaden the search for gold in the Peruvian Amazon at Boca Colorado, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-03.jpg
  • A single man is in charge of felling trees to extend the area of search and extraction of gold in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-04.jpg
  • A single man is in charge of felling trees to extend the area of search and extraction of gold in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-05.jpg
  • A miner walks next to mounds of gravel that serve to lift the wooden ramps and when the mud is thrown, it is trapped in the carpets.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-06.jpg
  • A miner uses a wooden plank to float and stand while tying down the hose that sucks the mud out of a flooded hole containing gold sediment in Boca Colorado, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-07.jpg
  • A miner uses a wooden board to float and move through a flooded hole from which they extract gold with machinery in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-08.jpg
  • A miner collects sediment with a tray to check if there is still a chance of finding gold in the area where they have been working for several days in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-09.jpg
  • Two miners reinforce the knots of the logs that support the ramp where the mud slides and the gold particles get trapped in carpets in the peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-10.jpg
  • A miner observes the mud that slides on a carpet, at the end of a 24-hour day the sediment that was trapped is separated to search for gold in the peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-11.jpg
  • A miner walks alongside a flooded area used to extract gold by means of a truck engine machine, tubes and hoses in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-12.jpg
  • A miner adjusts the moorings of the machine they use to extract gold in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-13.jpg
  • Vegetation of the Peruvian Amazon. Boca Colorado, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-14.jpg
  • A group of men build a new machine for the extraction of gold in the Peruvian Amazon. Boca Colorado, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-15.jpg
  • One of many trees felled to expand the work area for gold mining in the Peruvian Amazon. Boca Colorado, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-16.jpg
  • Floating tree trunks, a devastated landscape, mounds of gravel to support ramps for the separation of sediments with gold in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-17.jpg
  • A miner adjusts the moorings of the machinery they use to extract gold in the Peruvian Amazon. Once they have finished extracting gold in that place, they will continue deforesting to extend the work area. Boca Colorado, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-18.jpg
  • A miner controls an engine adapted to suck and eject mud from a flooded hole in the Peruvian Amazon, the mud contains gold that is separated by gravity as it slides down a ramp. Boca Colorado, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-19.jpg
  • A miner during his work day, around him, trees that have been cut down to expand the area for the extraction of gold in the Peruvian Amazon. Boca Colorado, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-20.jpg
  • Workplace for gold mining in the Peruvian Amazon. Delta 1, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-21.jpg
  • A family heads to the mining corridor in Madre de Dios, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-22.jpg
  • Wood from the Amazon in Madre De Dios, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-23.jpg
  • One man loads gasoline for the boat's engine, other miners head to different gold mining sites along the Madre de Dios River in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-24.jpg
  • Students in the courtyard of a school in Boca Colorado, a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-25.jpg
  • Students line up to enter the classroom at a school in Boca Colorado, a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-26.jpg
  • Father Pablo Zavala offers a mass for the death of a person from the San Jose de Kareme community in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-27.jpg
  • Father Pablo Zavala offers a mass for the death of a person from the San Jose de Kareme community in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-28.jpg
  • Delta 1, one of the main gold mining towns in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-29.jpg
  • On the way to Delta 1, one of the main gold mining towns in the Peruvian Amazon. The cars move on mounds that were used to place ramps for the separation of gold sediments.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-30.jpg
  • Mound of gravel that was used to place a separation ramp for gold sediments in Delta 1, one of the main gold mining towns in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-31.jpg
  • A group of young people wait for a truck to take them to Delta 1. To move from one town to another within the mining corridor, several rivers must be crossed, this is more difficult in the rainy season.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-32.jpg
  • Vegetation gains space on an old gravel mound used to place a separation ramp for gold sediments in San Jose de Kareme, a town in the mining corridor in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-33.jpg
  • Deforested landscape and gravel mounds to mount ramps for the separation of gold sediments in San Jose de Kareme, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-34.jpg
  • A miner holds gold in his hand, with the sale of the gold he will obtain payment for his 24-hour workday in San José de Kareme, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-35.jpg
  • Deforested landscape and old gold extraction zone in the middle of the mining corridor in the Peruvian Amazon. San Jose de Kareme, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-36.jpg
  • Deforested landscape, and waste in an old gold mining area in the mining corridor in the Peruvian Amazon. San Jose de Kareme, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-37.jpg
  • Sediment mounds from gold extraction in the mining corridor in the Peruvian Amazon. San Jose de Kareme, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-38.jpg
  • Pickup trucks cross several rivers carrying gasoline. The Peruvian government has prohibited the sale of gasoline in large quantities without a permit in the Peruvian Amazon. Huaypetue, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-39.jpg
  • Huepetuhe is a city that was formed due to mining activity, here you can buy all type of tools, equipment and products for mining in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-40.jpg
  • Monument dedicated to the miners who came with the hope of finding gold in Huepetuhe, Peru. Huepetuhe is a town where the largest gold extraction is concentrated within the mining corridor. in the peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-41.jpg
  • A young man waits for transportation to go to work at a gold mining camp in Huepetuhe, Peru. Huepetuhe is a town where the largest gold extraction is concentrated within the mining corridor in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-42.jpg
  • Landscape devastated by mining activity in Huepetuhe, Peru. Huepetuhe is a town where the largest gold extraction is concentrated every day, destroying the Amazon rainforest.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-43.jpg
  • Huepetuhe is one of the largest mining areas in the Peruvian Amazon. Huepetuhe, Peru. The view is from an old river bed.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-44.jpg
  • A man protects himself from the rain in Huepetuhe, Peru. Huepetuhe is a town where the largest gold extraction is concentrated and where people work every day, destroying the Amazon rainforest.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-45.jpg
  • Huepetuhe is one of the largest mining areas in the Peruvian Amazon. Huepetuhe, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-46.jpg
  • Washed soil slides down four carpeted ramps that catch gold in its wake in Huepetuhe, Peru. Huepetuhe is one of the largest mining areas in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-47.jpg
  • Three women pose for a photo during a party in the main square of Boca Colorado, Peru. Boca Colorado is a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-48.jpg
  • Selling fried fish in Boca Colorado, Peru. Boca Colorado is a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-49.jpg
  • Daily life in Boca Colorado, Peru. Boca Colorado is a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-50.jpg
  • A child poses for a photo during a party on the streets of Boca Colorado, Peru. Boca Colorado is a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-51.jpg
  • People attend a party in the main square of Boca Colorado, Peru. Boca Colorado is a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-52.jpg
  • Daily life, some people watch a soccer game in Boca Colorado, Peru. Boca Colorado is a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-53.jpg
  • Daily life, a group of men watch a soccer game in Boca Colorado, Peru. Boca Colorado is a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-54.jpg
  • A couple and other people attend a soccer game in Boca Colorado, Peru. Boca Colorado is a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-55.jpg
  • Women sell fruits and tubers in Boca Colorado, Peru. Boca Colorado is a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-56.jpg
  • A woman sells sausage and meat during a party in the main square of Boca Colorado, Peru. Boca Colorado is a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-57.jpg
  • A couple embraces during a party in the main square of Boca Colorado, Peru. Boca Colorado is a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-58.jpg
  • Daily life in Boca Colorado, Peru. Boca Colorado is a town formed entirely by mining activity in the Peruvian Amazon.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-59.jpg
  • The miners come and go from their camps for the extraction of gold in the interior of the Amazon rainforest, they move through the Madre de Dios River in Boca Colorado, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-60.jpg
  • Riverbed of the Madre de Dios River, near the town of Boca Colorado, Peru. In the interior of the Amazon jungle there are camps for the extraction of gold.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-61.jpg
  • Cayucos with products for trade in the riverbed of the Madre de Dios River, near the town of Boca Colorado, Peru. In the interior of the Amazon jungle there are many camps for the extraction of gold.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-62.jpg
  • Miners wash and shake a carpet to separate the gold sediments on a riverbed, near to Boca Colorado, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-63.jpg
  • Two miners work alongside the bed of the Madre de Dios River in the extraction of gold by suction using a gasoline engine in the Peruvian Amazon. Boca Colorado, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-64.jpg
  • A miner removes the stones that clog a hose that sucks the mud, a motor drives the mud so that it collides with a mesh and it slid along a carpet and by gravity the gold is trapped. Bed of the Madre de Dios River near Boca Colorado, Peru.
    Mining-Peruvian-Amazon-65.jpg
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