Full Breakdown
Peru Launches “Operation Mercury 2” to Push Illegal Gold Miners Out of Tambopata Reserve
8/15/2026, 6:11:00 AM
Core Event
On August 11, eight Peruvian navy personnel descended from a helicopter into a clearing along the Malinowski River in the Madre de Dios region. The raid was part of Operation Mercury 2, a renewed military campaign aimed at dismantling illegal gold-mining operations that have moved into the Tambopata National Reserve. Troops destroyed dredges, pumps, fuel stores and, most notably, the motors that power the mines.
Background & Context
Illegal gold mining has long plagued the Peruvian Amazon. A 2019 crackdown, the original Operation Mercury, temporarily reduced activity but miners later shifted toward protected lands. Rising global gold prices have made even small extractions highly profitable, prompting expansion into Indigenous territories and national parks.
Data & Statistics
- Equipment destroyed in the three-day raid: 56 motors, 78 mining rafts and 13,751 gal (? 52,050 L) of fuel, valued at more than 15 million soles (? US $4 million).
- Motors targeted: larger units cost US $30,000-$45,000 and can extract 30-50 g of gold per day.
- Cumulative destruction: 115 motors have been destroyed over the previous three months.
- Environmental impact: By mid-2025, gold mining had cleared roughly 139,169 ha (? 344,000 ac) of Amazon forest in Peru.
- Mercury contamination: A 2021 study found 71 % of residents inside mining communities and 80 % of those outside had hair-mercury levels above the U.S. EPA reference value.
Official Statements & Responses
Deputy prosecutor Ronald Flores Yáñez told the Associated Press that miners have already entered the Tambopata Reserve and that “hundreds” of dredges are operating inside it. He emphasized that raids alone will not end the problem and that prosecutors are now pursuing equipment seizures and the financial networks behind the mines.
Lt. Cmdr. Renato Miranda briefed troops that the mission’s priority was to “neutralize and dismantle” illegal mining by destroying the “main machinery.” He noted that eliminating motors raises the cost of restarting operations.
Provisional deputy supreme prosecutor Ronal Ramón Flores Ñañez described Operation Mercury 2 as the start of a long-term, multi-agency presence intended to keep miners out of national parks.
Global Conservation, a U.S. nonprofit partnering with Peruvian authorities, will support the effort with satellite monitoring, aerial reconnaissance and on-the-ground raids throughout the coming year.
On-the-Ground Reports
Soldiers encountered a woman and her one-year-old child living in a mining camp; the woman had traveled from Cusco to work as a cook after failing to enter university. Troops escorted the family to Puerto Maldonado and released them after questioning.
In several camps, troops burned makeshift shelters, fuel tanks and personal belongings, and used explosives to destroy submerged motors. At one site a soldier ignited a recovered motor on a pile of mattresses.
Why It Matters
The operation targets a nexus of environmental degradation, public-health risk and illicit financing. Mercury runoff contaminates rivers, bioaccumulates in fish and threatens Indigenous communities that rely on fishing. Deforestation contributes to biodiversity loss and climate change. By striking at the economic core of illegal mining, the government hopes to make the activity less profitable and deter future encroachments into protected lands.
What’s Next
Peruvian authorities plan to maintain a permanent, multi-agency presence in Tambopata National Reserve, combining continued raids with financial investigations to trace the capital behind the mining enterprises. Global Conservation will keep providing satellite and aerial surveillance throughout the next year to locate and dismantle new camps as they appear.
