The nature of small-scale gold mining varies widely, ranging from illegal gold mining with direct ties to armed groups, to fully legal gold mining enterprises.[21] In practice, most miners interviewed for this report self-identified as either “legal” or “informal.”[22]
Unable to meet the same environmental, financial, and legal obligations as big companies, legal miners sometimes resort to illicit activities like purchasing illegal explosives or selling gold through illegal channels, thereby further isolating them from the formal sector and depriving the government from royalty payments.[23] Legal miners in Los Andes explained the difficulty of accessing legal explosives, commercializing their gold—they either have to cross the border to Ecuador or drive the dangerous road to Medellín—or accessing government support.[24]
Communities that depend on informal mining often experience a dearth of public service delivery. Moreover, because many of Nariño and Antioquia’s mineral resources are located far from urban centers, mines usually live where state presence is weakest and armed group presence is strongest. Furthermore, the stigmatization of informal mining obstructs individuals from accessing public services with miners classified by the state as “illegal” and thus compelled to hide from the state. In some cases, however, small mining can significantly strengthen public service delivery. The mining cooperative in La Llanada, for example, has encouraged the investment of mining revenues into the funding of public services, thus reinforcing a mutually beneficial relationship between the municipal government and the mining community
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