Target of historic decision, Atrato river suffers from mining – 09/28/2024 – Environment

The Atrato River, in Colombia, should be a global symbol of the protection of the rights of nature, following an unprecedented judicial decision in Colombia. In 2016, the Constitutional Court declared its riverbed, basin and tributaries to be a “living entity” and “subject of rights” to protection and preservation.

However, eight years later, the watercourse continues to suffer from illegal mining, armed conflict and poverty.

Located in a forest region with no good highways, its 750 kilometers are the main road in a historically marginalized region, with a majority of Afro-descendants (87%) and the poorest in the country.

Until a few decades ago, Atrato was a source of coolness in the relentless heat of western Colombia. But today its waters are full of mercury, used in mining to separate gold particles from sediments.

“It’s a river with injured and violated rights”, summarizes environmentalist Ligia Ortega.

In October, Colombia will host COP16, the United Nations conference on biodiversity, which could return the river to the center of debate.

Little will from the State, lack of interest in creating public policies and corruption are some of the obstacles that prevent the decision from getting off the ground, explains the magistrate who gave the ruling in favor of the river, Jorge Palacio.

The sentence also appointed 14 guardians, who are the legal representatives and the voice of the river. One of them cannot hide his sadness when remembering the crystal clear waters where he bathed when he was a child.

“Our parents left us a transparent, clear river, and today we have the obligation to do the same, and I think we are failing,” says Ramón Cartagena, 59.

“We felt a bittersweet taste,” he adds. “Illegal mining continues to expand every day.” For him, the implementation of the sentence in favor of the river is progressing at a “snail’s pace”.

Atrato rises from a mountain at an altitude of 3,900 meters. There, its water is crystal clear and drinkable, but as the current advances, it reveals contamination and other problems: deforestation, poverty, absence of the State and the war between the National Liberation Army guerrillas and the Gulf Clan, the largest country’s drug trafficking cartel.

In plain sight, gigantic dredgers vacuum the riverbed in search of gold. Anyone who sails there looks away for fear of reprisals.

“People are afraid to report it, everyone stays silent”, laments Bernardino Mosquera, 62, another guardian. Leaders denounce death threats in the most dangerous country in the world for environmental defenders.

Environmental and health contamination

In addition to the risk posed by violence, studies show that mercury harms the health of riverside residents.

“Where there is a greater intake of fish is where there is a greater concentration of mercury in humans”, observes José Marrugo, a researcher at the University of Córdoba. According to the expert, residents “at risk” and with “chronic poisoning” were identified.

Dredgers also turn over the earth and release other toxic metallic elements, such as arsenic, lead and cadmium.

Arnold Rincón, director of the local environmental authority, assures that 34% of the area degraded by mining activity in 2016 has been recovered. He also states that the mercury level is below the limit in the water — but the fish that are consumed by the population are not the target of the analysis.

In the Quibdó market, capital of the Chocó department, sellers complain. “People are afraid to buy fish because there is a lot of mercury and there are people who have been very affected,” says Narlin Córdoba, 46.

According to the Ombudsman’s Office, after the sentence, there is no evidence of “any type of progress that contributes to the effective conservation” of the river.

Citing a UN report, the prosecutor’s office states that Colombia is the largest emitter of mercury per capita in the world, and the third country that contaminates the most with this mineral on the entire planet.

Armed groups extort dredger owners. According to the Colombian Navy, each of the machines produces more than 150 grams of gold daily.

In 2024 alone, the military destroyed 334 illegal mining machines in Atrato.

Near the source, the Canadian mining company El Roble legally mines copper, gold and silver with an expired contract in the process of being extended. The company’s activities are questioned by activists — who, however, recognize its role as an economic engine in the region for more than 30 years.

When contacted by AFP, the company did not comment.

The winding, swollen river, a source of food, transportation, trade and traditions, advances to the Caribbean Sea, near the border with Panama.

Indigenous Ember woman Claudia Rondán, 41, says that the Artrato “is like our artery” and that she dreams of a clean and healthy river. “Without him, we wouldn’t exist,” he says.