EL DORADO: Rainforest pays high price for gold fever
13 Mar 2017
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An illegal gold mining site in French Guiana that was seized by French soldiers in 2011 |
By ALEX KIRBY | The legend of El Dorado lives on. The glistening treasure of Latin America, which five centuries ago drew the European conquistadores in search of gold and plunder, is still causing devastation in parts of the continent.
New research has shown that when the price of gold rises, deforestation increases − and when the price drops, so does the threat to the trees.
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