Illegal gold mining on Yanomami lands in 2022. Valentina Ricardo / Greenpeace
A decade ago, illicit gold miners in the Brazilian Amazon began invading the lands of the Yanomami people. New research finds a clear link between the rush of illegal mining and a surge of malaria among the Yanomami.
The mining boom, which began in 2016, accelerated after former president Jair Bolsonaro deregulated gold mining in the Amazon, sparking a wave of incursions on Indigenous lands. By 2023, there were 20,000 illicit gold miners in Yanomami territory, or roughly two miners for every three Yanomami. At the height of the mining rush, nearly every Yanomami tested was found to have malaria.
Researchers say that mining can spread malaria in three ways. First, invading miners may bring malaria with them. Second, as miners clear forest and dig for gold, they leave behind large pits that fill with water, creating the perfect breeding grounds for mosquitoes that spread malaria. Third, by using mercury to separate gold from other minerals, miners may contaminate the water supply, and people poisoned with mercury are less able to fend off malaria.
A new analysis of satellite imagery and health data finds that as illegal mining took hold in Yanomami territory, cases of malaria grew fourfold. The surge was clearest in areas that were heavily mined, according to the study, published in the journal Biology Letters.
For the Yanomami, the spread of malaria had devastating ripples. Infected villagers were unable to hunt or tend plots of manioc and bananas, leading to widespread starvation. Reporting by Yale Environment 360 brought attention to the humanitarian crisis and the devastating toll it took on Yanomami children.
After President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva came to power in 2023, Brazil launched a campaign to “completely eradicate illegal mining” from Yanomami territory. The following year, officials announced they had expelled most of the miners and destroyed much of their equipment, including 45 barges, 18 aircraft, and 42 airstrips. And yet the Yanomami are still dealing with the fallout from the mining rush.
In an open letter to President Lula, published in March, Indigenous leaders wrote that “malaria has continued to spread rampantly through the Yanomami Indigenous Territory since 2022, despite a notable decline in gold mining activities.”
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