Ernesto Benavides Gallery
Ernesto Benavides01Gold mining dredges lay the rainforest to waste in La Pampa, an illegal gold mining area within Madre de Dios, Peru.
Ernesto Benavides02Spindly skeletons are all that remain of the trees that once forested this area in Tambopata National Reserve.
Ernesto Benavides03An estimated 148,000 acres of rainforest have been lost to illegal gold mining in Peru.
Ernesto Benavides04Gold mining dredges remove riches beneath the soil.
Ernesto Benavides05The rate of forest loss resulting from gold mining in Peru has more than quadrupled since 1999.
Ernesto Benavides06Open pits scar the landscape where miners have extracted gold.
Ernesto Benavides07A view of the depleted forest canopy in an area where illegal gold mining occurs.
Ernesto Benavides08La Pampa is located near the Interoceanic Highway connecting Brazil and Peru.
Ernesto Benavides09Illegal gold mining is a multibillion dollar industry in Peru.
Ernesto Benavides10Tainted water runs from a mining site through a ravaged stretch of forest.
Ernesto Benavides11The gold mining happens in open pits like this one.
Ernesto Benavides12The government has conducted hundreds of raids on the camps.
Ernesto Benavides13When the police arrive, the miners have often already fled, having been tipped off beforehand.
Ernesto Benavides14The miners leave a desolate scene behind.
