Larissa Rodrigues, Project and Product Manager at Escolhas, signs an article in Folha de S. Paulo about the threat of mining in indigenous lands

Published on February 2, 2021 in Folha de S. Paulo (one of the main newspapers in Brazil), Larissa Rodrigues’ article brings an analysis of the current Brazilian political context and actions in relation to mineral exploration in indigenous lands. In her text, Larissa Rodrigues, who is Project and Product Manager at Escolhas Institute, brings data from the study “What is the real socioeconomic impact of gold and diamond exploration in the Amazon?”, released on January 28 in live broadcast.

Read the article below:

Bolsonaro prioritizes threat to indigenous peoples with bill that authorizes mining

Gold mining in the Amazon leaves a trail of social and environmental destruction, such as contamination, deforestation and violence

3.Feb.2021 at 11:15pm – Larissa Rodrigues

The year began with a new threat to the indigenous peoples of Brazil. The President of the Republic and the newly elected President of the House of Representatives, Arthur Lira, (https:/www1.folha.uol.com.br/poder/2021/02/lira-e-pacheco-definem-pauta-economica-como- prioridade-e-cobram-agilidade-na-vacinacao.shtml), have just agreed to prioritize voting on a bill that allows mining on Indigenous Lands.

President Bolsonaro first presented the PL 191 Bill permitting mineral exploration on Indigenous Lands in February 2020 and has been pressing for its approval ever since.

Wildcat goldminers and entrepreneurs who benefit from mining in the Amazon are currently circulating inside the Palácio do Planalto, free to articulate with the government on the authorization of their operations, which are as yet illegal.

Motivating this pressure are the select few who benefit from the activity, since mining in the Amazon does nothing to enhance local populations’ livelihoods.

A recent study by the Instituto Escolhas, , confirmed what is already visible on the ground: gold mining does not improve development indicators such as health, education and the per capita GDP of the region’s municipalities.

The study shows that any positive effect on these indicators is merely temporary, lasting a maximum of five years before disappearing altogether. Mining leaves a trail of permanent social and environmental destruction, such as the contamination of rivers and local populations with mercury, deforestation, violence, slave labor, prostitution, and fiscal evasion.

Bolsonaro’s defense that mining brings wealth to the region has been disproven. Gold mining cannot change the economic dynamic in the Amazon, as its very premise is the usurpation of natural resources, keeping local populations poor, sick and without education.

It is no secret that gold mining practices in the Amazon are mostly illegal, with links to organized crime, which in turn increases violence. An example of this is the 2015-2018 joint operation between federal prosecutors and federal police, called ‘Dilemma de Midas‘ [Midas’ Dilemma], which uncovered a scheme to purchase 611 kilos of gold of illegal origin.

At present, thousands of wildcat miners are extracting gold from Indigenous Lands and Conservation Units, and they remain in these areas without any surveillance. Seeing as the lion’s share of gold produced in the country is targeted at the foreign market, the risk of contaminating Brazilian gold exports, which increased 18% last year, is a real risk.

In order to end illegality in Brazil’s gold mining industry, as well the threat that mining poses to Indigenous Lands, President Bolsonaro and Congressman Arthur Lira must focus on combating environmental crimes in the Amazon, which threaten to damage the country’s exports, namely agribusiness.

Today it is impossible to know whether the gold circulating in the market is of legal origin or contaminated by the suffering and misery of those who live in the Amazon.