ARTISANAL AND small-scale gold mining (ASGM) in the amazon
WHAT IS THIS?

This website is dedicated to raising awareness about the extent and impact of small-scale illegal gold mining on people and ecosystems in the Madre de Dios region of Peru.  It was created by researchers at Duke University (read about each of us here).

We have also put together a Science Brief summarizing the impacts of ASGM on human health, the environment, and socieconomics, as well as the legal/policy structure, which you can access in Spanish here.

Mining and People

the legal context​

Legal Background. Comparative Law. Law Enforcement. Here you can find the National and International legal background governing ASGM and mercury pollution in Peru. Why is this illegal activity expanding? What options exist to regulate or restrain its impact?

human health impacts

People throughout the Madre de Dios region have elevated levels of Hg in their bodies. What are the health consequences of high Hg exposure?

altered communities

New highways and access to Peruvian gold has brought many migrants to the Amazon interior. What are the social impacts of this modern gold rush?

MINING and the ENVIRONMENT

Mercury POLLUTION

In extracting gold, miners are boiling off tremendous quantities of mercury which then enters ecosystems via polluted air and rain

Sediment Pollution

 The massive amount of earth moving associated with gold mines is increasing sediment loads in Madre de Dios
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DeFORESTATION

This image from NASA earth viewer (source link) shows the expansion of gold mining into the Amazonian rainforest

OUR GOAL

To raise awareness about the extent and impact of small scale gold mining in order to better protect human health and biodiversity from its negative impacts.
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