Dataset of gold-mining related deforestation and formalization in Madre de Dios, Perú from 2001 to 2014

A global surge in ‘artisanal’, small-scale mining (ASM) threatens biodiverse tropical forests and exposes residents to dangerous levels of mercury. In response, governments, and development agencies are investing millions (USD) on ASM formalization; registering concessions and demarcating extraction zones to promote regulatory adherence and direct mining away from ecologically sensitive areas. This data publication contains data used to examine patterns of mining-related deforestation associated with ASM formalization efforts in the Department of Madre de Dios in the Peruvian Amazon. Using satellite images and government-issued spatial layers on mining formalization, we tracked changes in mining activities from 2001 to 2014 when agencies: (a) issued 1701 provisional titles and (b) tried to restrict mining to a > 5000 square kilometer (km²) ‘corridor’. The data reported in this publication are based on the centroids of a 25 hectare (ha) hexagon grid covering the 20,850 km² study area and includes variables related (1) mining deforestation from years 2001 to 2014, (2) mining concession status, (3) location relative to the mining corridor, as well as (4) location relative to time-invariant variables and access (geology, distance to river), administrative units (district, native communities), and conservation designation (protected areas).Data were compiled and analyzed to examine patterns of mining-related deforestation associated with formalization efforts in the Department of Madre de Dios, Perú.For more information about this study and these data, see Álvarez-Berríos and L'Roe (2021).