Impacts of Mining in Conservation Units in the Brazilian Amazon

Abstract

The aim of the study was to investigate the relationship between the intensification of environmental degradation, measured as deforestation, and authorized mining activities within Conservation Units in the Amazon biome using a mixed methodology combining the use of the Leopold matrix and analysis of satellite images obtained through Google Earth and Qgis. The hypothesis was that mining activities in federal Conservation Units, indirectly increase deforestation at the edges of, and even inside, Conservation Units due to interest from other sectors of the economy. In order to determine mining incidence, the characteristics of institutional environmental management mechanisms in Conservation Units, and the profile of requests for and issuance of mining licenses in protected areas, a sample of 30 cases was selected and studied. Databases from several agencies were also employed and the Leopold matrix was used to identify and classify different types of environmental impact and detect correlations among them.