Deadly conflicts: Mining, people, and conservation

Although mining has undeniable importance to the Brazilian economy, the environmental degradation it causes can generate profound impacts on ecosystems and landscapes. Contrary to some expectations (or intentional advertising), that they are only related to pitches and their immediate surroundings, mining impacts indeed reach much further (e.g., Fernandes et al., 2014; Ross et al., 2016; Santos and Milanez, 2017). The impacts of mining on ecosystems and conservation are global and of major concern because of their synergy with other drivers of ecosystem changes. Areas degraded by mining result from a wide range of drivers that, acting alone or in synergy, impact the environment. Perhaps most striking is the removal vegetation cover due to the modification of the soil structure. These processes, in turn, generate a cascade of consequences for fauna, ecosystem functioning, damage response capacity, and the provisioning of ecosystem services (e.g., Cardiff et al., 2012; Durán et al., 2013; Murguía et al., 2016). Areas degraded by mining combine vegetation suppression, habitat fragmentation, compaction of exposed material, low infiltration rates and water storage capacity, groundwater retraction, soil nutrient leaching, disruption of nutrient cycling, erosion, pollution of soil and water resources (with solvents, oils, greases and heavy metals), increased air and water particles, oxygen deficiency in water bodies, light and noise pollution, intentional introduction of non-native species during restoration, landscape alterations, and the destruction of local communities (e.g., Selinus et al., 2013; Murguía et al., 2016; Parise, 2016; Costa-Milanez et al., 2017). The direct effects of mining on biodiversity and ecosystem services are amplified several times when the effects of research, drilling, urban development and the creation of roads and other logistic infrastructure inherent to operations of mineral extraction are considered. Since accidents do occur, the lack of established mitigation strategies for each type of ecosystem make the impacts even worse. All these types of impacts have resulted in the loss of biodiversity, especially of rare species and those restricted to particular habitat types, population fragmentation, genetic bottlenecks, increased vulnerability to disease, chasing away animal species, among many others (Cardiff et al., 2012; Durán et al., 2013; Murguía et al., 2016). A major concern today is the intentional use of exotic species in the restoration of degraded areas. This practice has resulted in further environmental degradation by facilitating additional invasions, hindering natural regeneration, and negatively impacting hydrological and fire regimes, landscape quality and restoration processes (e.g., Hilario et al., 2011; Fernandes et al., 2016a).