Canadian Mining Project Threatens Amazon Biodiversity and Indigenous Communities
A Canadian mining company, Belo Sun, is planning to establish Brazil's largest open-pit gold mine in the Volta Grande do Xingu region of the Amazon. This project involves constructing a tailings dam three times larger than the one that burst in Brumadinho in 2019, which resulted in 272 fatalities. The proposed site is near the Xingu River, an area already impacted by the Belo Monte Hydroelectric Plant. The project, which had been stalled since 2017 due to a suspended license, received a green light from the courts in February 2026. Now, it awaits final approval from Pará’s Environment, Climate, and Sustainability Secretariat. The region is home to several Indigenous communities, including the Xikrin, Juruna, and Arara peoples, who face displacement and environmental degradation. The project has sparked resistance from these communities, who have occupied local government offices and demanded meetings with environmental authorities. 
