The exploitation of the precious metal reaches alarming levels and becomes a lucrative business because of the illicit price of up to 28,000 colones (US$54) per gram, Sergio Torres, head of the Prevention, Control and Protection Program of this protected reserve, which includes valuable tropical ecosystems, told the television station.

The system of illegal gold extraction in Corcovado, which attracts organized criminal groups from all over the country,” he explained, “further encourages this illegal presence in the area and increases the ambition of the miners, who use increasingly sophisticated techniques and methods.

“We have information that these people are working in tunnels inside the National Park, using modern equipment, including mineral detectors, plants and electric tools to break the gold-bearing rocks,” the prevention and protection official said.

For Torres and other park caretakers, extraction is already a large-scale operation, with camps set up in the area, where miners stay for several days.

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