After decades of chaos and neglect, Peru’s government is finally trying to rein in the gold rush that is driving deforestation in the country’s southeastern rainforest. An emergency decree issued on Feb. 18 suspends approval of new mining claims in the Madre de Dios region bordering Brazil and Bolivia, delimits the area where mining is permitted and prohibits the use of dredges for mining in rivers. The decree calls for a process to bring miners into the formal economy and reclaim land degraded by mining, which has left several watersheds looking like moonscapes. “For the first time in the history of the country, areas where mining is not permitted are being established,” says César Ipenza, legal advisor to Environment Minister Antonio Brack. Brack is the... [Log in to read more]