Overview

• Peru was told to reform laws, seize river‑dredging machinery and other mining equipment, and stop extending a registry for informal miners that critics say shields illegality.
• Authorities have 20 working days to report compliance steps or face referral to the Andean Community’s Tribunal of Justice, which can impose binding trade sanctions.
• The case stems from a June complaint by Nanay River basin communities citing mercury‑tainted fish and hair samples far above WHO limits tied to illegal mining.
• Soaring gold prices and weak traceability let illicit Amazon gold flow into global markets, prompting a Catholic leader to urge buyer nations such as Switzerland, China, the UAE and the UK to require provenance checks.
• Previous crackdowns, including 2019’s Operation Mercury and a record contraband mercury seizure at Callao this year, have not ended enforcement gaps or rising threats to environmental defenders, with reports of links to armed groups.