Peru’s Operation Mercury stopped most illegal gold mining in one biodiversity hotspot in the Amazon. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

 Artisanal and small-scale gold mining is a lifeline for many who live in Madre de Dios, a region in southeastern Peru, where poverty is high and jobs are scarce. But the economic development in this part of the Amazon basin comes at a cost, as it causes deforestation, build up of sediment in rivers, and mercury contamination in nearby watersheds, threatening public health, Indigenous peoples, and the future of the biodiversity hotspot.

read more... https://bioengineer.org/perus-operation-mercury-stopped-most-illegal-gold-mining-in-one-biodiversity-hotspot-in-the-amazon-then-the-covid-19-pandemic-hit/