Undermining rights: indigenous lands and mining in the Amazon
This new WRI report estimates that legal and illegal mining in the Amazon now cover more than 20% of Indigenous lands – over 450,000 square kilometers. It also finds that Indigenous lands with mining experienced higher incidences of tree cover loss than on those without – at least three times greater in Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru. Yet national laws continue to favor companies over Indigenous communities, the study’s legal analysis reveals. It sheds light on this uneven playing field and offers recommendations for Amazonian governments and mining companies.
