{"id":18577,"date":"2020-10-07T15:39:35","date_gmt":"2020-10-07T18:39:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.amazoniasocioambiental.org\/radar\/undermining-rights-indigenous-lands-and-mining-in-the-amazon\/"},"modified":"2020-10-07T15:43:21","modified_gmt":"2020-10-07T18:43:21","slug":"undermining-rights-indigenous-lands-and-mining-in-the-amazon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.raisg.org\/pt-br\/radar\/undermining-rights-indigenous-lands-and-mining-in-the-amazon\/","title":{"rendered":"Undermining Rights: Indigenous Lands and Mining in the Amazon"},"content":{"rendered":"

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by\u00a0Patricia Quijano Vallejos<\/a><\/span>,\u00a0Peter Veit<\/a><\/span>,\u00a0Pedro Tipula<\/span><\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0Katie Reytar<\/a><\/span>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

World Resources Institute (WRI) and RAISG<\/strong><\/p>\n

October 2020<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]With\u00a0gold prices skyrocketing<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0demand for other minerals on the rise<\/a>, mining poses a growing threat to communities and ecosystems around the world. Conducting geospatial analysis of the Amazon biogeographic region, this report estimates, for the first time, the full extent of legal, large-scale mining concessions and illegal mining operations on Indigenous territories within the rainforest. It finds that, together, legal and illegal mining now cover more than 20% of Indigenous lands, endangering hundreds of Indigenous communities and critical ecosystems across 450,000 square kilometers.<\/p>\n

Mining, the study also shows, is polluting at least 30 Amazonian rivers and eroding communities\u2019\u00a0proven ability<\/a>\u00a0to prevent deforestation. From 2000 to 2015, Indigenous lands with mining activities had higher incidences of tree cover loss than those without mining. In Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru, for example, forest loss was at least three times higher in Indigenous territories with mining operations \u2013 both legal and illegal \u2013 than those without; and one to two times higher in Colombia and Venezuela.<\/p>\n

Yet national laws often favor companies over Indigenous communities, the study\u2019s comprehensive legal assessment of six Amazonian countries, including Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana and Peru, reveals. Although these countries all grant important legal protections to communities, these land rights are insufficient and leave most Indigenous Peoples vulnerable to mining. Government oversight of mining activities across Indigenous lands, enforcement of existing legal protections and compliance with international environmental and social safeguards also remain weak in practice, creating tensions between Indigenous communities and miners that often escalate into violent conflict.<\/p>\n

Protecting Indigenous lands, including the sustainable development and environmental benefits they generate, will require a radical shift in governments\u2019 and companies\u2019 approaches to mining. Amazonian countries should strengthen Indigenous Peoples\u2019 land and natural resource rights; establish and enforce social and environmental safeguards aligned with international standards; more consistently monitor mining operations across Indigenous lands; and step up efforts to identify and prosecute those who facilitate illegal mining practices. Companies, the report recommends, should comply with these stricter safeguards as well as invest in ecological restoration and reforestation of old mining sites.<\/p>\n

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Read more here:<\/strong><\/h2>\n