09-05-2025
- Business
- National Geographic
Celebrate National Photography Month with these stunning photos
Aerial view of Julissa Barrios in an area that was worked with legal mining and is now in the process of recovery. Julissa belongs to the Barrios family, who manage the concession "Los Cinco Rebeldes." For some time now, the family has been trying to leave behind mining practices to start with projects that are more environmentally responsible. The Huepetuhe area currently belongs to what is known as the "mining corridor", a sacrifice area where these practices have been allowed in a regulated manner. Mining in this area has been going on for decades and the impact on the territory has been very significant. Some businesses, such as the "Los Cinco Rebeldes" concession, have tried to generate more sustainable alternatives to their business, such as eco-tourism. For some years now, the Amazonian area of Madre de Dios in Peru has been impacted by legal, illegal, and informal gold mining. To tap the gold, miners literally turn the jungle upside down. They arrive in a humid, leafy, abundant territory and leave behind a desert, often contaminated by mercury, a fundamental element for gold mining.
Photograph by Luján Agusti
