Gold today commands a staggering $1,700 an ounce, more than six times the price of a decade ago. The surge is attributable to demand by individual and institutional investors seeking a hedge against losses and also the insatiable appetite for luxury goods made from the precious metal. But, while a great deal of international attention has focused on diamond mining in Africa and its bloody consequences, gold mining in the Amazon River Basin is wreaking havoc on both the Peruvian rainforest and the people who have occupied the region for thousands of years.
Chief Writing Wolf 