Brazil’s top court breaks Indigenous mining deadlock
Mining in Brazil’s Indigenous lands is nothing new, but a recent Supreme Court ruling could start to change it.
The Brazilian Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the Cinta Larga Indigenous community, allowing them to legally explore and mine four territories while Congress works on national legislation governing mining on Indigenous lands. The decision comes after a March 2025 ruling by Supreme Court Justice Flávio Dino, who gave Congress 24 months to regulate mining activities on Indigenous territories.
In the absence of such legislation, the interim framework permits the Cinta Larga to conduct research and mining activities, provided they comply with temporary regulations that include environmental approvals, community consultations, and a cap of 1% mining on their territory. Dino emphasized the urgency of the issue, stating that the debate is about the role, defense, and use of their territory, rather than whether mining exists.
The ruling aims to empower Indigenous communities by granting them greater control over mineral development on their lands, addressing the contradiction of illegal mining occurring in some Indigenous areas while Congress fails to establish proper legislation.
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