Assessing the Environmental Impacts of Land Restoration in Mining Regions

• In Event: Cleaning the Water, Improving the Land: Policy Effects

Abstract

Artisanal small-scale gold mining is a source of employment for millions of economically disadvantaged individuals worldwide, in Colombia, it sustains the livelihoods of over 1.5 million citizens. Unfortunately, this activity fuels illicit economies and contributes significantly to environmental degradation. Even more, the surge in gold prices has spurred a boom in mining activities across various countries, notably in Colombia, exacerbating environmental and health problems.

Oro Legal, implemented from 2015 to 2021, represents USAID's largest and most ambitious bilateral initiative supporting artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) in Colombia, specifically targeting the mining-intensive regions of Antioquia and Chocó. The program was designed to enhance mining practices, promote formalization, and reduce the environmental impacts of illegal mining. A key component of the program was the rehabilitation of degraded lands, covering 10,000 hectares in Chocó and 2,000 hectares in Antioquia. This paper aims to evaluate the impact of these rehabilitation efforts on forest cover, the prevention of illegal mining, and the scalability potential of such interventions.

For this assessment, I will use Satellite images available 1985 to 2023, surveys collected by USAID within the implementation area, and administrative data. To analyze this data, I will employ a Staggered Difference-in-Differences method. This approach accounts for the staggered start of treatment across areas—some beginning as early as 2016 and others as late as 2019. Additionally, I will apply the covariate-instrument approach from Freyaldenhoven, Hansen, and Shapiro (2019) to address potential confounding factors in the estimation. This paper presents an empirical case that illustrates the application of new methodological insights, contributing to the discussion of both their advantages and limitations.

In addition, I employed a qualitative approach, conducting approximately 30 interviews with planners and other stakeholders who interacted with Oro Legal during its implementation. These interviews provide insights into the specificities of program allocation, spillovers and interactions between the program and contextual factors in the implementation regions. This qualitative analysis sheds light on the challenges these programs face and offers a deeper understanding of the factors influencing program outcomes in the field.

Preliminary findings reveal heterogeneous effects across the regions. However, after controlling for various factors, I observe increases in forest cover across treated areas, though challenges remain in assessing the reliability of mining data and the role of property rights in sustaining restoration. Together, these results and my qualitative research show evidence of a rehabilitation model that could be replicated under certain conditions, though it may require a different economic approach than previously implemented. While international resources are needed to create restoration incentives, this context presents an opportunity to engage local resources from mining stakeholders to support the rehabilitation process.

This paper contributes to understanding the circumstances under which ecological restoration is effective, the role of international funders in shaping global environmental policies, and the impact of property rights on restoration outcomes. Additionally, I incorporate findings from other studies to project timelines for tree cover recovery, assessing whether successful land rehabilitation could realistically lead to measurable forest regrowth.

Author

• Paula Juliana Sarmiento, Duke University
  Presenting Author