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Peru Destroys 19 Illegal Gold Dredges on Nanay River in Latest Joint Operation

The crackdown targets networks polluting Iquitos’ main water source by cutting off fuel stockpiles crucial to river dredges.

Overview

  • An interinstitutional force led by the environmental prosecutor’s office dismantled dredges and camps between October 11 and 19 across San Juan de Ungurahual, Pucaurco and Alvarenga in Alto Nanay.
  • Authorities seized about 6,500 gallons of Diesel 2 — roughly 122 cylinders — with part of the haul transported to Iquitos by an Army river vessel.
  • The team included the Navy, Army, National Police, Air Force, Sernanp and the Loreto regional government, acting on targets mapped during a September 29 reconnaissance flight.
  • The Nanay supplies drinking water to roughly 500,000 people in Iquitos, and residents and local leaders say dozens of illegal dredges remain active despite repeated raids.
  • Prosecutors and researchers report a 33-kilometer fuel supply route, miners’ use of Starlink and drones to evade interdictions, and documented cases of sexual exploitation linked to the mining economy.