Mining has grown in Brazil – and especially in the Amazon. The information comes from the survey carried out by MapBiomas, which is being launched this Friday (22).
Growth has become even more intense in the last five years, mainly within indigenous lands.
The survey carried out by the network of NGOs and universities analyzed images obtained via satellite. The period was from 2018 to 2022.
In 2022, the Amazon biome concentrated 92% of the mined area in Brazil. In the last five years, around 40.7% of the total mining area was opened within the biome’s territory.
With illegal activity, the environment is also affected. According to satellite images, it is possible to notice that the Tapajós and Amazonas rivers had polluted sections, for example.
Garimpo also grew, mainly within protected areas, such as environmental reserves and indigenous lands. The area occupied in these territories jumped 190% from 2018 to 2022.
In 2022, according to MapBiomas, 39% of the area reached by invaders in search of gold was concentrated within an indigenous land or concentration unit.
According to the images, in 2018, indigenous lands had 9.5 thousand hectares occupied by illegal mining, while conservation units accounted for 44.7 thousand hectares. In 2022, the devastated area grew to 25 thousand hectares in indigenous lands and 78 thousand hectares in conservation units.
When analyzing only mining within indigenous lands, the growth is even more significant. From 2018 to 2022, the increase was 265%, with an additional 15.7 thousand hectares occupied. According to MapBiomas, around 62.3% of the mining area emerged in the last five years.
According to satellite images, the Yanomami indigenous area, for example, has been invaded by illegal mining for 20 years. But it was in the last ten years that it intensified. In the region, according to data from 2022, around 3.3 million hectares are occupied by illegal mining. The indigenous communities with the largest presence of miners are also: Kayapó (13.7 thousand hectares), Munduruku (5.5 thousand), Tratarim do Igarapé Preto (1 thousand) and Sai-Cinza (377).
Among the states, Pará, Mato Grosso and Minas Gerais concentrate the largest mining area, both industrial and illegal mining. There are 339 thousand hectares, that is, 76% of the total registered in the country within the three units of the federation.
In Pará, only 48 thousand hectares are industrial mining; while mining accumulates more than three times this size, with 149 thousand hectares.
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Source: CNN Brasil
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