Billions of dollars' worth of gold continue to be extracted illegally from Brazil’s Amazon rainforest, according to a Greenpeace study, despite President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s pledges to curb wildcat mining.
Lula pledged in 2023 to eliminate illegal gold mining from Indigenous lands and protected areas after years of expansion under far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro. Last year, Brazil’s Federal Police seized a record 447kg of illegally mined gold.
The Greenpeace study found that miners are adapting to the crackdown by using permits from areas with no mining activity to falsify the origin of gold.
Researchers analysed 187 forest areas near Indigenous lands and protected areas that had been issued mining permits by Brazil’s National Mining Agency (ANM). They found that 98 of these areas showed no signs of active mining.
Despite this, so-called "ghost permits" were used to justify the sale of 26.8 metric tonnes of gold, worth an estimated $3.88 billion, between 2018 and March 2026.
Investigators believe much of this gold is extracted from protected and Indigenous areas, including the Kayapó territory in Pará state.
Kayapó chief Megaron Txucarramae criticised the government’s failure to halt illegal mining.
“I don’t know what else is needed to solve illegal mining on Indigenous land,” he said. “It destroys the land, pollutes the rivers, and Indigenous people, without realising it, end up eating poisoned fish.”
In response, the ANM said it was monitoring the permits identified by Greenpeace for possible irregularities.
“With thousands of permits issued, the Amazon region imposes large-scale logistical and oversight challenges,” the agency added.
Record-high gold prices amid global geopolitical instability continue to drive illegal mining, creating new loopholes that make enforcement more difficult.
Environmentalists warn that without stricter oversight, the Amazon’s fragile ecosystems and Indigenous communities will continue to bear the brunt of the gold rush.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and AMD CEO Lisa Su have joined the advisory board of Tsinghua University’s School of Economics and Management (SEM),...
Pakistan says it carried out “well-planned and calibrated” air strikes on militant hideouts and safe havens in Afghanistan on Wednesday...
Investigators are examining an alleged cockpit assault aboard a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv that left the captain injured and forced the...
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has accused the U.S. and Israel of seeking to foment internal divisions in Iran after failing to defeat the country militarily, Iran's state news agency IRNA reported.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel may participate in the investigation into a serious incident aboard a flydubai flight bound for Tel Aviv, while investigators examine the motive of the co-pilot involved.
Passengers restrained a flydubai co-pilot who allegedly stabbed the pilot and tried to crash a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday.
Here's your AnewZ Daily Brief for 30 September 2026. These are the top five stories making headlines in Europe.
North Korea has dismissed as a “farce” Seoul’s claim that Pyongyang was responsible for a landmine explosion south of the Military Demarcation Line that injured three South Korean soldiers.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and AMD CEO Lisa Su have joined the advisory board of Tsinghua University’s School of Economics and Management (SEM), bringing two of the world’s most influential AI chip executives into a forum linking global business leaders with Chinese officials.
Investigators are examining an alleged cockpit assault aboard a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv that left the captain injured and forced the aircraft to divert to Saudi Arabia.
Türkiye’s flagship aviation and technology festival entered its second day on Thursday, bringing young innovators and leading domestic defence firms together in the south-eastern city of Şanlıurfa.
Pakistani airstrikes on Afghanistan’s Kunar and Helmand provinces killed nine civilians, including women and children, and injured 11 others, Afghanistan’s government said, as tensions between the neighbours deepen.
Britain says there are “strong indications” Iran played a role in a suspected plot targeting RAF Fairford, a military base in western England used by U.S. forces for operations against Iran.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment