Amazon town’s population explodes sevenfold as illegal mining and urban sprawl transform indigenous territory

In the heart of the Colombian Amazon, the town of Mitú tells a story of dramatic transformation that highlights the pressures facing one of the world’s most critical ecosystems. What was once a small settlement of just over 4,000 people five decades ago has exploded into an urban center of nearly 30,000 residents, creating an unprecedented frontier in the middle of the rainforest.

Each morning, Indigenous communities from the surrounding Great Vaupés Indigenous Reserve paddle traditional wooden canoes across the tea-colored waters of the Vaupés River, bringing fresh fish and produce to Mitú’s bustling markets. But as they navigate past concrete sewage pipes and urban infrastructure, they witness the stark contrast between their traditional way of life and the rapidly changing landscape around them.

The population boom stems from multiple sources: Indigenous people increasingly moving between their ancestral communities and the urban center, non-Indigenous settlers establishing businesses, and workers arriving for research centers and NGOs. However, more troubling drivers include illegal gold mining operations run by organized crime groups and the unauthorized extraction of critical minerals like coltan, essential for electronics and electric vehicle batteries.

The environmental consequences extend beyond mining. Local residents, NGOs, and authorities report expanding cattle ranching operations and illegal trafficking of timber, fish, and wildlife throughout the region. This transformation of Mitú represents a microcosm of broader challenges facing the Amazon, where traditional Indigenous territories increasingly intersect with modern development pressures, illegal resource extraction, and urban expansion.