Last Saturday, the board of SelvaViva Ecuador met in an emergency meeting. Illegal gold mining has increased dramatically due to the poor financial situation of many families here in the rainforest, but also due to the high gold prices. Hand-panning gold on one’s own property is permitted in Ecuador. However, mining with machines requires a government permit. Once approved by the government, the rules and environmental regulations are generally adhered to.

Illegal gold mining, however, is uncontrolled and therefore causes many problems: contamination of drinking water with mercury and other chemicals, destruction of streambeds, deforestation, deprivation of the indigenous population’s livelihoods, violence, noise emissions, and displacement of tourism.

The police are powerless, as illegal gold mining usually takes place far out in the forest. Corruption also contributes to this.
The miners’ aggressive behavior prevents us from intervening ourselves without risking our own lives. The frightened population itself is afraid to resist these interventions.

Our strategy is to draft an official letter to the authorities, signed by as many affected individuals and institutions as possible, and submit it to both the cantonal and state levels. Ecuador has one of the strictest laws regarding nature conservation. However, implementation is unfortunately lacking.