Illegal Mining in Venezuela: Death and Devastation in the Amazonas and Orinoco Regions
Publisher: Center for Strategic & International Studies
Author(s): Carrie Filipetti, Alessandra Pinna, and Carlos Holmes Trujillo
Date: 2020
Topics: Extractive Resources, Governance, Public Health, Renewable Resources
Countries: Venezuela
While the economic, humanitarian, and political crisis in Venezuela worsens, criminal groups—including gangs, Colombian guerrilla groups, and colectivos (paramilitary groups)—are competing for control of the country’s valuable mineral resources. These resources include bauxite, coltan, diamonds, and, particularly, gold. Illegal mining is causing irreversible damage to the environment, fueling human rights abuses, and creating significant security threats for Venezuela and the region.
At the same time, as significant sanctions and diplomatic isolation have not yet impacted Nicolas Maduro’s hold on power, illegal mining raises three fundamental issues for policymakers: (1) the implications of further instability in an already failed state, (2) the impact on sanctions policies, and (3) the challenge of getting these territories back from armed groups once there is a transition.