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The recent spike in global gold prices has ignited a significant mining rush within Brazil’s Amazon rainforest, leading to escalating deforestation in protected areas and alarming rates of mercury contamination. This trend, highlighted by a collaborative study from Amazon Conservation and Instituto Socioambiental, reveals the troubling consequences of illegal mining operations in the Xingu region, one of the largest protected forest expanses in the world.
Deforestation Accelerates in Protected Areas
The study indicates that illegal mining activities have resulted in extensive clear-cutting across three conservation zones within the Xingu region, which encompasses parts of Pará and Mato Grosso states. Satellite imagery and ground research have documented an alarming rate of destruction, particularly within the Terra do Meio Ecological Station, where illegal mining was first identified in September 2024. By the end of 2025, these operations had decimated approximately 30 hectares (74 acres) of forest.
The Altamira National Forest has also suffered, with illegal mining accounting for 832 hectares (2,056 acres) of deforestation from 2016 to September 2025. Furthermore, a newly established mining front grew to 36 hectares (89 acres) by October 2025, contributing nearly half of the total mining-related deforestation in that region during the year. A clandestine airstrip was also detected at the Nascentes da Serra do Cachimbo Biological Reserve, with illegal mining there expanding from 2 hectares (5 acres) to at least 26.8 hectares (66 acres) in 2025.
The Scale of Illegal Mining
The Amazon Mining Watch initiative, launched in 2023 by Amazon Conservation, Earth Genome, and the Pulitzer Center, employs satellite technology to monitor mining activities across the Amazon. Since 2018, approximately 496,000 hectares (1,225,640 acres) of rainforest have been cleared for mining, with about 223,000 hectares (551,045 acres) lost in the Brazilian Amazon alone. Alarmingly, an estimated 80 per cent of mining-related deforestation in Brazil is considered illegal.
While mining represents a smaller proportion of overall deforestation in Brazil—largely driven by agribusiness—it poses a significant risk to protected areas and Indigenous territories. In 2025, deforestation linked to mining accounted for about 17,000 hectares (42,000 acres) of the total 579,600 hectares (1,432 acres) cleared in the Brazilian Amazon.
Matt Finer, director of Amazon Conservation’s Monitoring of the Andes Amazon programme, emphasised the threat posed by mining: “What makes mining particularly problematic is that it targets protected areas and Indigenous territories,” highlighting the critical role of Indigenous land conservation in combating deforestation.
Enforcement Challenges Persist
In 2023, Brazilian authorities launched a vigorous crackdown on illegal gold mining in the Yanomami Indigenous territory, which had been engulfed in a humanitarian crisis due to mining activities. This effort led to a marked reduction in newly mined areas, yet illegal operations persist. Federal prosecutor André Luiz Porreca described enforcement as a “cat-and-mouse game,” noting that while authorities destroyed over 500 dredges in one operation, miners quickly resumed activities once enforcement efforts waned.
Porreca revealed that illegal mining is largely financed by major criminal organisations, such as the Red Command and the First Capital Command, which operate in numerous cities throughout the Brazilian Amazon. “They have the money to bankroll these operations,” he stated, with some dredges costing up to 15 million reais.
Despite the enforcement efforts in Yanomami territory, illegal mining has intensified in other areas, particularly within the Xingu River basin. The Kayapo Indigenous land has seen about 7,940 hectares (19,620 acres) of rainforest cleared due to illegal mining, making it the most severely impacted area in the Brazilian Amazon.
Mercury Contamination Escalates
The soaring gold prices, driven by investor demand for safe assets amid escalating global uncertainties, have provided a potent incentive for illegal mining activities. “It’s basic market logic. With more buyers, there are more people exploiting gold,” Porreca noted. The inadequacy of Brazil’s mineral export control system has contributed to the proliferation of laundering schemes that mask illicit gold as legitimate.
The environmental ramifications of illegal mining extend far beyond deforestation. Operations frequently discharge mercury into river systems, contaminating the waterways and accumulating in fish consumed by local communities. A report submitted by Porreca to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights underscored the gravity of mercury pollution, citing a study from Fiocruz that revealed 21.3% of fish sold in public markets in the Amazon exceeded mercury limits established by the World Health Organisation. Alarmingly, children aged 2 to 4 were found to be consuming mercury at levels far exceeding recommended maximums.
A Call to Action
Under Brazilian law, mining is prohibited on Indigenous lands. The Ministry of Indigenous Peoples has expressed that combating illegal mining on these lands is a priority for President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s administration. The ministry acknowledges that criminal networks sustain mining invasions, and dismantling these economic and logistical chains is crucial for effective enforcement.
The Ministry of Environment has also recognised the persistent issue of mercury contamination, indicating that it is expanding scientific monitoring while bolstering enforcement efforts. However, achieving a sustainable solution demands a concerted effort from multiple stakeholders to protect the Amazon and its Indigenous communities.
Why it Matters
The ongoing mining rush in Brazil’s Amazon not only threatens biodiversity and ecosystems but also jeopardises the health and livelihoods of Indigenous populations. As the world grapples with the climate crisis, the ramifications of illegal mining extend beyond local boundaries, potentially accelerating global warming and threatening ecological balance. The fight against illegal mining is not merely a matter of environmental preservation; it is a critical juncture in the struggle for social justice and the protection of Indigenous rights. The time for decisive action is now, as the Amazon continues to face unprecedented threats from the insatiable demand for gold.
