Factores determinantes en el desplazamiento de la actividad agrícola en el área de influencia del Distrito Minero Chinapintza-Zamora Chinchipe

Abstract

The phenomena of land cover and land use change despite of being possible to detect by geographic information systems (GIS), are not so simple to explain. Artisanal mining has been executed in the Chinapintza District since 1980, but the resulting changes in land use from its influence had been unknown until now. A land cover change analysis from 1990 to 2014 and an approach to the population using semi-structured interviews have successfully demonstrated that, despite the general acknowledgement of mining pollution to water and soil, people attribute the displacement of agriculture to other reasons. At the time, that rural abandonment sets as a growing phenomenon, trade relationships between miners and local farmers are almost nonexistent, and fortunately, the mining representatives show intention to consume local products if they become more diverse and assume a competitive price. Finally, the application of a regression model identified that the best locations to achieve worthy farm incomes are located near the urban centers.