Environmental and Economic Injustices in Territories Fractured by Mining in Crixás, Goiás (Brazil)

Abstract

Mining in Goiás (Brazil) encompasses a complex extractive network, integrated into the global scales of commodity trade. Thus, the present research aimed to interpret the gold extractive economy in Crixás (GO). It demonstrated that mining generates mineral dependency, does not diversify the local economy, and maintains a reality characterized by environmental and economic inequalities and injustices. The methodology employed in this research included a bibliographic review based on critical scholars of the Brazilian mineral problem. Additionally, data was gathered from sources such as the National Mining Agency (ANM), the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), the Mauro Borges Institute (IMB), and the Brazilian Public Sector Accounting and Fiscal Information System (Siconfi). The presentation of the results was divided into three parts: initially, the study sought to understand the contradictions of the Brazilian mining model and its territorialization through the mega gold mining operations in both underground and open-pit mines in the municipality of Crixás. In the second phase, it focused on interpreting the evolution of CFEM revenue, its contribution to the municipal budget, the contradictions of mineral dependency, and its economic, environmental, and social effects. One of the socio-economic implications of mega-mining in the municipality is mineral dependency, the lack of economic diversification, and the persistence of people in poverty and low-income situations. In summary, this highlighted local conditions of environmental and economic injustices.