In 2013, a small group of Brazilian forestry engineers ecologists, and other scientists formed a special operations unit. Known as the Grupo de Especialização de Fiscalização (GEF), the unit operates under Brazil’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Change. GEF targets the most destructive criminal groups involved in illegal gold mining in the Amazon Rainforest. To align more closely with the ministry’s mission to protect the Brazilian Amazon, GEF could integrate environmental stewardship into its operations. Adopting measures such as protecting water sources or neutralizing heavy-metal contamination hotspots may not only foster recovery of fragile ecosystems but also signal responsibility and restraint, potentially strengthening GEF’s legitimacy and relations with local communities. Illicit mining in the Amazon encroaches on territories inhabited by Indigenous communities like the Yanomami. It routinely releases heavy metals such as mercury into the environment, with damaging consequences to human and animal health that persist long after the miners leave. The illicit operations are oftentimes backed by syndicates and cartels, which equip the miners with camps, heavy earth-moving machinery, dredges and aircraft. They also finance supporting infrastructure, such as airstrips, to transport supplies in and smuggle gold out of the rainforest. GEF plans its operations against these illicit networks in secrecy and over several months, gathering detailed intelligence on the criminal activity. The unit’s operators undergo training developed by specialized police who combat organized crime. This training is also tailored to the rainforest environment. The Brazilian Ministry of Environment and Climate Change presents GEF as an elite unit, emphasizing…This article was originally published on Mongabay

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