Gold mining in Bolivia: a resource that comes at a cost

Local mining in the Bolivian Amazon. // CREDIT: Maia Galmés Feuer (AKAM).

Bolivia’s mineral wealth has long been a key part of its economy, but the recent boom in gold mining is reshaping life in many communities. What is emerging is a constant balancing act between income and impact, between immediate survival and long-term consequences for health and the environment.

Why gold matters locally 

In many rural and indigenous areas, state support is limited and often inconsistent. Basic services such as healthcare, education, and infrastructure do not always reach the communities that need them most. In that context, mining becomes less of a choice and more of a necessity, as stated by Yashir Salvatierra, president of the Puerto Pérez Community in the Bolivian Amazon. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDqTImJ0XoY

This is what gold mining looks like on the ground, and where mercury exposure begins to affect both people and nature. // Filming, Production & Editing: Maia Galmés Feuer (AKAM).

Moreover, for many families, gold mining offers something few other activities can: quick income. It is often combined with other seasonal work, such as Brazil nut harvesting, which is an important and growing source of income for indigenous families, as pointed out by Roland Mejía, president of the Indigenous Communities Council of Tacana II. 

Mejía explains that when the Brazil nut harvesting season ends, people turn fully to mining to make up the rest of the year’s income. 

This reliance is a response to limited alternatives. Because of the environmental and health-related risks associated with mining work, it is not framed as an ideal long-term option, and there is a growing focus on diversifying income sources, Mejía explains. 

Explosive growth and weak oversight 

Over the past decade, gold mining in Bolivia has expanded rapidly, driven by high international prices and relatively weak enforcement of regulations. 

Close-up of a carpet used in gold mining, showing fine gold particles trapped in the fabric. // CREDIT: Maia Galmés Feuer (AKAM).

Most production now comes from artisanal and small-scale mining cooperatives, which have become powerful economic actors in their regions. In their search for new deposits, these operations have increasingly moved into forests, watersheds, and previously untouched land. 

With limited oversight, the boundary between legal and illegal activity is often blurred, especially in remote areas where enforcement is weak. 

It's like the health system expects to see symptoms. But that’s not how this works. Mercury-related damage can take years to appear.

Environmental consequences 

The environmental footprint of gold mining is visible in many regions: deforestation, river alteration, and the opening of access routes into fragile ecosystems. Its most serious impact, however, is less visible. 

Mercury is widely used in artisanal gold mining to separate gold from sediment. The process is simple but highly toxic: mercury is mixed with crushed material to form an amalgam, which is then burned so the mercury evaporates and the gold remains. 

A local miner holding liquid mercury, used in gold mining to separate gold from sediment. // CREDIT: Maia Galmés Feuer (AKAM).

Carlos Castañeda, drone and surveillance coordinator at Conservación Amazónica - ACCA, explains that this process releases mercury into the air, soil, and waterways, where it can travel far beyond mining sites. 

Once in aquatic systems, mercury can transform into methylmercury and accumulate in fish, entering the food chain and eventually the human body. 

Health risks and invisible damage 

The health impacts of mercury exposure are complex and often delayed, which makes them difficult to identify in real time. 

As Doctor Alfredo Laime explains, mining workers are exposed to mercury vapors through inhalation, while downstream communities are exposed through diet, particularly through fish consumption. 

But the effects are not immediate. “It’s like the health system expects to see symptoms. But that’s not how this works”, Laime says, emphasizing that mercury-related damage can take years to appear and depends on the level of exposure over time. 

However, he adds that in the case of mining workers, who are continuously exposed to mercury vapors, effects can appear sooner, including neurological and cardiovascular problems, particularly affecting the central nervous system. 

Young local gold miners in the Bolivian Amazon shaking carpets to separate fine gold particles from sediment. // CREDIT: Maia Galmés Feuer (AKAM).

A major limitation, he explains, is the lack of capacity to properly diagnose mercury poisoning. “We don’t have the infrastructure, and we don’t have trained personnel, as doctors here don’t study toxicology. So, there are no laboratories to measure mercury, and no specialists in toxicology” Laime notes. 

Because of these constraints, mercury-related conditions are often not confirmed or are attributed to other causes. As a result, many cases go unrecognized, and communities may be suffering health impacts linked to mining without a clear diagnosis. 

A complex trade-off 

For many communities, gold mining is not framed as development or expansion; it is survival. 

Salvatierra describes it by stating the following: “there is contamination, yes, but no serious incidents so far”, then he giggles and says “But, as they say, it’s better to be safe than sorry”. 

That tension runs through the entire story. 

Mining provides income where few alternatives exist, and in some cases supports access to food, education, and health expenses. But the costs are not immediate. They accumulate quietly, through polluted rivers, changing ecosystems, and long-term health risks that may only become visible years later. 

What emerges is not a simple narrative of harm or benefit, but a system where both exist at the same time, and where communities are left navigating the space between them.