<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>Illegal extraction of gold has grown to be a problem in many countries, causing the degradation of the environment. The main purpose of this paper is to investigate changes in tree cover and surface pollution. The development of a mine site has been observed and analysed with images acquired from Landsat and the Sentinel missions. The results of the study showed changes in the state of the environment, strongly suggesting the possibility of ongoing pyrite weathering processes and the transportation of clay materials down watercourses, which can cause not only the further deterioration of the environment but also slow down the natural regeneration of the forest. In addition, research has found disturbing changes in vegetation, showing a loss of tree cover in the Amazon Rainforest as high as 17%. The validity of using remote sensing methods to observe the development of individual mining sites and their characteristics was confirmed.</p>
</abstract>

Illegal extraction of gold has grown to be a problem in many countries, causing the degradation of the environment. The main purpose of this paper is to investigate changes in tree cover and surface pollution. The development of a mine site has been observed and analysed with images acquired from Landsat and the Sentinel missions. The results of the study showed changes in the state of the environment, strongly suggesting the possibility of ongoing pyrite weathering processes and the transportation of clay materials down watercourses, which can cause not only the further deterioration of the environment but also slow down the natural regeneration of the forest. In addition, research has found disturbing changes in vegetation, showing a loss of tree cover in the Amazon Rainforest as high as 17%. The validity of using remote sensing methods to observe the development of individual mining sites and their characteristics was confirmed.

<bold>Remote sensing techniques</bold> for tracking changes caused by illegal gold mining in Madre de Dios, Peru

Department of Geoinformatics and Applied Computer Science, Faculty of Geology, Geophysics and Environmental Protection

Institute of Socio-Economic Geography and Spatial Management, Department of Cartography and Geomatics, The Faculty of Earth Sciences and Spatial Management

Miscellanea Geographica

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

 for tracking changes caused by illegal gold mining in Madre de Dios, Peru

Illegal extraction of gold has grown to be a problem in many countries, causing the degradation of the environment. The main purpose of this paper is to...

Remote sensing techniques for tracking changes caused by illegal gold mining in Madre de Dios, Peru

Published Online: Sep 26, 2021

Page range: 205 - 212

Received: Dec 18, 2019

Accepted: Jun 28, 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/mgrsd-2020-0028

Keywords
Environmental monitoring, geospatial analysis, South America, remote sensing, Peru

© 2021 Katarzyna Adamek et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

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Remote sensing techniques for tracking changes caused by illegal gold mining in Madre de Dios, Peru

Published Online: Sep 26, 2021

Page range: 205 - 212

Received: Dec 18, 2019

Accepted: Jun 28, 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/mgrsd-2020-0028

KeywordsEnvironmental monitoring, geospatial analysis, South America, remote sensing, Peru

© 2021 Katarzyna Adamek et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Keywords
Environmental monitoring, geospatial analysis, South America, remote sensing, Peru