Bolivia's Cacao Farmers Triumph Over Gold Mining With Local Bans
In the lush, biodiverse landscapes of northwestern Bolivia, a quiet revolution is unfolding as cacao farmers successfully defend their land against the encroaching gold mining industry. Through grassroots activism and strategic local legislation, communities are preserving their agricultural heritage and protecting vital ecosystems from environmental degradation.
The Agroforestry Defense
Herminio Mamani, former president of El Ceibo, Bolivia's largest organic cacao cooperative, tends his farm beneath towering mahogany trees in Palos Blancos. The cooperative's 1,300 members employ an agroforestry model where multiple crops grow together, creating a sustainable ecosystem that produces high-quality cacao for chocolate and other products while maintaining biodiversity.
"We cacao producers would never kill an animal here," Mamani declares as parrots squawk nearby. "The parcels can never be monocultures – all the crops grow together." This approach stands in stark contrast to the destructive practices visible just 20 miles away, where dredging boats and excavators operate relentlessly along the Kaka River, rerouting waterways and encroaching on forests in some of the world's most biodiverse national parks.
The Mining Threat and Local Response
The gold rush threatening Bolivia's forests gained momentum as gold prices surged by more than 64% in 2025, reaching record highs above $5,100 per ounce in January amid rising geopolitical uncertainties. This price explosion has fueled both legal and illegal mining operations that have spread into protected areas, often unhindered by lax national regulations.
Mamani's land remains protected thanks to local laws passed in 2021 banning mining in Palos Blancos and neighboring Alto Beni. He was among those who pushed for the municipal ordinance declaring Palos Blancos mining-free, a move framed as essential for safeguarding agriculture and food security. Alto Beni followed suit with a similar measure months later.
The initiative began in 2017 when a mining dredge appeared on the nearby Boopi River, which borders both municipalities. Both communities, reliant on organic agriculture, had avoided mining but witnessed its devastation elsewhere.
Community Mobilization and Economic Protection
"I've known Mayaya since I was young, and the river used to be deep and full of fish," says Roberto Gutierrez, a farmer in Alto Beni, referring to a nearby town where mining dominates. "Now the water levels have dropped, pollution has seeped in, and the fish are disappearing."
When miners threatened their territory, communities reacted swiftly. "People gathered in mass protest and issued a warning: 'Leave, or we burn your machinery,'" recalls Nancy Chambi, a farmer and Alto Beni councillor. The miners left, but the threat remained.
El Ceibo and other cooperatives opposed mining primarily because mercury contamination could strip them of international organic certifications. "Even if small-scale mining were permitted, it's a slippery slope," Mamani explains. "Contamination would be unavoidable, and if we lost our certifications, the price of our cacao would plummet."
Legislative Victories and Economic Resilience
After four years of grassroots pressure, Palos Blancos and Alto Beni passed their mining bans in 2021. A 2024 departmental law further legitimized their stance against the national government's will. "We showed people that mining does more harm than good," says Ulises Ariñez, former environment secretary for Palos Blancos. "People have realized that gold is temporary, but agriculture and conservation are for life."
The laws have secured farmers' organic status and economic stability. In 2025, El Ceibo exported 2,000 tonnes of cacao, mostly to Europe and the United States, providing some resilience amid Bolivia's broader economic crisis. "With the country's economy in such bad shape, people here are a bit more at ease," says Jesús Tapia, an El Ceibo producer.
For Chambi and Gutierrez, who sell crops including cacao, bananas, and papaya through a smaller cooperative, the laws have been transformative. "If Mayaya has yellow gold, we have purple gold," Gutierrez proudly declares of their cacao pods.
Broader Implications and Continuing Challenges
At least 10 other municipalities and Indigenous territories are now pursuing similar bans, inspired by the success in Palos Blancos and Alto Beni. "This is the beginning of the fight," says Pablo Solón, an environmental activist and former Bolivian ambassador to the UN who has supported municipalities seeking alternatives to mining. "We have to build a wall to prevent mining from coming down the river."
Solón sees the most potential for resistance in municipalities such as Rurrenabaque, which already has a strong tourism sector, and Indigenous territories like Pilón Lajas, while acknowledging that mining will continue elsewhere. "It will be a wall to prevent the cancer from spreading," he says. "But the cancer exists."
Not all communities have the same advantages. While cacao producers in Palos Blancos and Alto Beni access international markets, elsewhere farmers struggle. "We have produce, but lack access to markets," says Karen Coata, vice-president of the Organisation of Indigenous Leco Women. In her territory, Pilcol, people report mercury-related illnesses such as headaches and lung pain, yet many mine to supplement their incomes. "How else will we make ends meet?" she asks.
National Context and Future Prospects
The national government has shown little inclination to support local bans. The Ministry of Mining and Metallurgy and the Bolivian mining authority declined interview requests. In January, the minister of mining told local media that high gold prices represent an "opportunity" for Bolivia to export up to $5 billion of the metal annually, while also stressing the need to curb smuggling and improve traceability.
In February 2025, Bolivia's new administration considered a decree to fast-track the regularisation of non-compliant mining operations. If approved, it would reduce legal requirements for 3,982 mining projects that have failed to comply with a 2014 law, including exemptions from environmental permit requirements.
Despite these challenges, supporters of local bans remain hopeful. In 2025, Peru's side of Lake Titicaca gained legal recognition, and a court suspended mining outside authorised areas along Bolivia's Madre de Dios River. Four new protected areas were also created.
"We in Alto Beni are living harmoniously and peacefully," Chambi says. "All we ask is that it continues." As gold prices continue to rise and mining expands globally, Bolivia's cacao farmers have demonstrated that local action can create meaningful protection for both livelihoods and ecosystems in the face of powerful economic forces.
