Illegal Mining Witnessed Notable Decline in Ecuador

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The illegal mining operations in the country recorded sharp decline by 60% during the initial ten-month period of the current year, says Ecuador’s Agency for Mining Control and Regulation (ARCOM) in its latest report. This is upon comparison with the same period a year before.

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According to the agency, the drastic drop in illegal mining is mainly attributed to the series of operations launched during this period. A total of 418 campaigns were reported. These led to the arrest of over 180 people, ARCOM said. The operations also resulted in seizure of as many as 49 units of mining equipment and 628 tonnes of ore. The seized ore were handed over to the National Mining Company for processing and the proceeds of the sale will be credited to the National Treasury, it noted.

Illegal mining in the country poses threat not only to the environment, but also to the safety of people living nearby. A report published by the Financial Action Task Force in 2015 had revealed that illegal gold mining in Ecuador produced around 6-8 tons of gold every year.