Migration to the Gold-Mining Frontier in Brazilian Amazonia

In recent years small-scale gold mining has become the leading economic sector in large areas of Amazonia. Associated interregional migrations and urbanization challenge common assumptions about the agrarian frontier. Surveys conducted in southern Para [Brazil] indicate that migrants maintain significant urban linkages and view gold mining as a viable alternative to agricultural work. Public policy is better directed at ameliorating severe environmental problems in the mines than at eliminating the resilient mining sector. (EXCERPT)