Army Dismantles Illegal Mining Camp in Puyango, Loja — Mercury Seized Near Bosque Petrificado

Operation Details

Ecuadorian Army personnel dismantled an illegal mining camp in cantón Puyango, provincia de Loja, in the zone of the río Puyango near the Bosque Petrificado — Ecuador's fossilized forest, a protected conservation area.

The encampment comprised an improvised structure with capacity for approximately 15 personnel, used as a base for material extraction.

Seizures

Item	Quantity
Water pumps (bombas de agua)	3
Mobile phones	4
Gramera (precision scale)	1
Mercury (frasco)	1
White-substance container	1 (pending analysis)

Mercury seizure is materially significant: it confirms mercury-amalgamation extraction processes, one of the most environmentally destructive alluvial gold recovery methods.

Arrests and Prosecutions

None reported in initial El Universo coverage. Operations of this type frequently proceed by camp dismantlement without personal detentions, given logistical isolation and evidentiary constraints.

Environmental Context

The camp operated near "fuentes hídricas del sur del país" — water sources in southern Ecuador. Mercury contamination in headwater regions of the Puyango river system is a cross-border concern: the Puyango drains into Peru and has been the subject of bilateral Ecuador-Peru correspondence on water quality.

The Bosque Petrificado proximity is notable — the park is internationally recognized for paleontological significance and represents a protected-area perimeter in which mining operations are prohibited.

What to Watch

• Follow-on operations. Single-camp dismantlements rarely represent a full sweep of a mining zone. Operational patterns suggest 2-4 additional camps in adjacent river reaches are likely in operation.
• MAATE follow-up. The Ministry of Environment typically initiates remediation assessments after Army dismantlements; no public MAATE announcement yet.
• Cross-border water quality reporting. Peruvian water-quality authorities may flag downstream mercury readings; bilateral diplomatic exchange historically follows.
• ARCERNNR investigation. Ecuador's mining and non-renewable resources regulator (formerly ARCOM) has jurisdiction over formalization pathways; whether this operation was on claimed-but-unissued concessions or in truly unconcessioned territory is not disclosed.
• Loja-Zamora capacity reallocation. Illegal alluvial mining has intensified in southern Ecuador as formal large-scale projects (Cangrejos, Fruta del Norte) concentrate regulatory and enforcement attention elsewhere. Watch for capacity reallocation to the south.

Source: El Universo