Every year, 10 tons of gold are illegally extracted from the soils of French Guiana. Gold mining sites are proliferating in certain municipalities, such as Maripasoula, Sainte-Elie and Papaïchton. The village of Saul, located in the south of the territory, could have known a similar fate, hundreds of gold diggers digging the ground, destroying the forest in the process and polluting the rivers with mercury. But the inhabitants, elected officials, associations and the Amazonian Park of Guyana have drawn up another path: that of tourism turned towards nature.
“In French Guiana, the village of Saül chooses the path of ecotourism over gold panning”, a major report by Emma Chevaillier.