Ethnoecology, Resource Use, Conservation And Development In A ...

industries have been identified as the main causes of degradation and destruction of
Guyana's forests (Colchester 1998).
2.4.1 Amerindians and the Mineral Industry in Guyana
Mining for gold and diamonds has a long history in Guyana, archaeological evidence
suggesting that gold was mined in the Upper Mazaruni in pre-Colombian times. Gold
was important to both colonial and national economies from the mid-19th century
until the decline of the industry in the 1980's. The 1990's saw a huge increase in
mining both by small scale independent miners, locally referred to as pork-knockers,
and non-Guyanese multinationals, which has brought the industry into conflict with
Amerindian people in many areas of Guyana (Anselmo and Mackay 1999: 46-47). This
has been most thoroughly studied in the Upper Mazaruni, where large numbers of
pork-knockers operate close to, and often upon, Amerindian lands. Multinationals
operating in the area have also intruded on titled village land without permission,
damaging farms in at least one area. Mining operations are reported to have caused
extensive environmental damage, making the river useless for all domestic purposes.
Fish stocks have almost disappeared, and populations of game animals are also highly
depleted as a result of hunting by and on behalf of miners and the noise associated
with mining operations. Subsistence activities such as maintaining a farm have been
neglected by many local residents drawn to the mines in search of cash, and
dependence on imported foods and malnutrition are now common in formerly self-
sufficient communities. Social effects include increased economic inequality, the
breakdown of traditional family systems, involvement of Amerindian women in
prostitution and an increase in schoolgirl pregnancy (Forte 1997: 77-81, Anselmo
and Mackay 1999: 61-64).
Despite these reported negative impacts of small-scale mining upon Amerindian
communities in its vicinity, it is simpistic to regard these communities as in simple
confrontation with the industry. Large numbers of Amerindian people are themselves
involved in small-scale mining activities, and for many it is their only means of access
to the cash economy. A study of mining communities close to the Guyana-Brazil
border suggested that the presence of non-Amerindian miners in these areas
increases the potential economic output of the Amerindian segment of the workforce.
The presence of Brazilian miners, usually working illegally, was considered to be
particularly important in effecting infrastructural improvements and increasing the
availability of petrol and other goods. This, it was concluded, financial benefits
Amerindian miners, whose potential income from mining is elevated (Roopnaraine