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Brazil has 453 illegal garimpos in the Amazon, according to an unpublished map presented Monday (10) by Raisg (Network of socio-environmental georeferenced information of Amazonia). More than 2,500 people live in the biome, which extends over nearly 7 million km² and spreads over nine countries.
While Venezuela, which is in the midst of a humanitarian crisis, occupies the first place in the Amazon ranking of this predatory activity, with 1,899 garimpos illegal, Brazil ranks first among the countries that maintain illegal activity on indigenous lands , with 18 cases 37 identified, and in conservation areas.
This picture may get worse soon. Elected President Jair Bolsonaro said indigenous peoples have the right to exploit their lands. He also suggested that Indians collect royalties on mineral extraction from reserves.
Sunday (8), after many controversies and an indefiniteness, Bolsonaro announced the future Minister of the Environment who will face the problem: Ricardo Salles. Former Secretary of Environment São Paulo to the direction of Geraldo Alckmin (PSDB), he was known for his criticism of the MST.
"The purpose of the map is to show the transnational scope of illegal mining in the Amazon, generally practiced by illegal groups and damaging the forest, rivers, Indians and traditional populations," explains Alicia Rolla, geographer from ISA (Social and Environmental Institute), who coordinates Raisg.
In addition to Venezuela (1,899 garimpos illegal) and Brazil (453), the map shows 134 in Peru and 68 in Ecuador.
To arrive at the result, the researchers added knowledge from various sources, such as technical studies, information from local partners, news from each country's press, and satellite image badysis. "We worked about a year and a half on the project," says the geographer.
The map shows 2,312 points and 245 areas for extraction or extraction of minerals such as gold and diamonds. "Conceptually, the" points "and" zones "are identical, but the" zones "are the mines of which we determine the extent by remote sensing."
In addition, 30 rivers were mapped by extraction activity or by input of machinery, inputs and mineral production. In Colombia and Bolivia, the units of badysis were the rivers, which is why they are not quantified in points.
According to Roberto Cabral, coordinator of inspections in Ibama, illegal mining causes "destruction of forest cover". . In the Amazon, most garimpos follow the stream, so that exploration destroys ravines, alters rivers, and destroys streams. "
According to Alicia Rolla, the map will allow environmental agencies to devise more articulate intervention strategies" because it allows us to see an entire region, not just isolated mines "
It also mentions the possibility of to strengthen international cooperation in the fight against this crime.It gives the example of mining carried out on Yanomami lands in Brazil and Venezuela.
"When an inspection is carried out on the Brazilian side, garimpeiros escape on the Venezuelan side and return later. This mapping can serve as a basis for guiding an international articulation needed to combat illegal mining. "
" It is an illegal and illegal activity, "said Cabral, on mining in the lands and indigenous areas.
In addition to to be at the top of the ranking, Venezuela is also the country where mining generates more social tensions.The creation in 2016 of the mineral vault of the Orinoco, located in the watershed, triggered conflicts armed in the region.It is estimated that more than 100 people have died in clashes since 2016.
"C is a huge region that occupies 12% of the Venezuelan Amazon," said Gustavo Faleiros, InfoAmazonia coordinator, who produced, in partnership with
"The government has mapped areas of existence of minerals in order to make concessions and partnerships with private initiatives. But there were already illegal miners in this region and since the decree of creation [do Arco Mineiro] the army was sent to take over some of it. "
The Venezuelan government's attack in the region is seen as an attempt after the decline in the price of oil, to raise funds from gold mining, whose market value has grown significantly over the last decade.
In Brazil, metal valuation, 149% since 2010, R $ 155.23 is listed as one of the reasons for the increase in the Illegal mining in the national Amazon, whose mining center is located in the region of the Tapajós River.
There, the exploitation dates from the late 1950s, it is said Maurício Torres , from the Federal University of Pará
Initially, all work was done by hand and by hand, according to Torres, a peculiarity of the region allowed mining companies not to control garimpeiros at the beginning.
"Gold is distributed in a huge space. Thus, if a mining company controlled a point, the gold digger only needed to go to the next field. To a certain extent, this has given the garimpo a democratic and national situation. "
With the scarcity of surface gold mined by early prospectors, the Tapajós region saw the arrival of jet pipes. In this technique, pressurized water is used to clean The resulting suspension is then filtered for the extraction of the metal.Practical produces large craters
"This has already made possible some control of access to gold by the owners of garimpo ", because of the cost of buying the machine and fuel.
Since 2008, the situation has changed dramatically with the arrival of hydraulic backhoes and raclette dredges, resulting in mbadive destruction
"The great transformation of the region occurred with the arrival of PCs, which have a senseless impact on the environment. I would dare to say that the change in forest cover has been more important in the last 10 years than in the previous 50 years. "
This also resulted in economic concentration and control over unpublished mining activities.A computer costs about R $ 500,000.
In this context, says Torres, it is very important to differentiate the prospector from the prospector. "The garimpeiro, in general, is a pawn, a rural worker, a waterfront, is someone who fights for his survival. The thug is the owner of the garimpo. However, the idea persists that the prospector is the devil. Almost all actions attack only the end of the chain, invest against the garimpo. It does not work. "
The arrival of the PCs in the Tapajos has occurred with the rise in the price of gold." From the 1990s, with the opening of the ex- Soviet Union, a large amount of gold was injected into the market and prices fell. Since the economic crisis of 2008, gold has been further strengthened. From that moment, the relationship between the price of gold and the price of diesel began to compensate. "
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