A recent study shows that if all of Brazil’s active legal mining sites continue to operate in the coming decades, emissions will total an estimated 2.55 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent due to loss of vegetation and soil.

The $60 million deal comes after the two partners tried, and failed, to find a third party to take over Gramalote earlier this year.

A recent clash between soldiers and illegal miners in Venezuelan’s Amazon ended up with two people dead and six injured.

Colombia’s Minister of Mines and Energy revealed some elements of a proposed Mining Law.