How gold surpassed cocaine as Peru’s most profitable criminal industry

The Guardian Environment Tuesday 29 September 2026, 12:00 UTC By Dan Collyns in Madre de Dios 1 min read

Key Points

As gold prices surge, illegal mining has laid waste to swathes of Tambopata National Reserve’s rainforest“Halt, stop right there,” shouts a Peruvian Navy Seal, firing warning shots into the air. But the fleeing man pays no attention, scrambling up to the rim of a football pitch-sized crater and disappearing into the dense rainforest as the commandos give chase, swearing and shooting. Meanwhile, other marines set dynamite charges on a makeshift wooden raft that floats in the crater, which is...

As gold prices surge, illegal mining has laid waste to swathes of Tambopata National Reserve’s rainforest

“Halt, stop right there,” shouts a Peruvian Navy Seal, firing warning shots into the air. But the fleeing man pays no attention, scrambling up to the rim of a football pitch-sized crater and disappearing into the dense rainforest as the commandos give chase, swearing and shooting.

Meanwhile, other marines set dynamite charges on a makeshift wooden raft that floats in the crater, which is essentially an enormous pit of opaque, stagnant water. The raft has a diesel-fuelled suction pump motor with thick plastic tubing used to suck up and sift through river sediment for tiny particles of gold.

Peru (LOCATION) Tambopata National Reserve’s (ORG) Peruvian (ORG)

Originally published by The Guardian Environment Read original →

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How gold surpassed cocaine as Peru’s most profitable criminal industry

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