The extractive industry has the potential to bring progress to the global South. But it is also leading to deforestation, environmental destruction, and human rights violations. A CDE research team in Madagascar has investigated the social and environmental impacts of mining, analysing, among other things, deforestation and forest degradation over time and space. On closer inspection, it turns out that the largest mine in Madagascar, Ambatovy, is having a far greater impact on the forest than previously reported – despite the company’s efforts to provide ecological compensation.
