El impacto socioambiental de la minería ilegal en territorios indígenas: responsabilidad estatal y vacíos en la aplicación del marco normativo The socio-environmental impact of illegal mining in indigenous territories: state responsibility and gaps in the application of the legal framework.

Abstract

This research examines the legal responsibility of the Ecuadorian State regarding the expansion of illegal mining in the Amazon, specifically focusing on the provinces of Napo and Pastaza. The main purpose is to identify the regulatory flaws and institutional failures that hinder the effective protection of the rights of nature and ancestral peoples. The study employs a qualitative approach through analytical-synthetic and inductive methods, allowing for the decomposition of factual events to integrate them into the current legal framework. The documentary analysis technique was applied, using the list of cited legal and bibliographical sources as an instrument, highlighting the gap between constitutional precepts and territorial reality. The findings demonstrate that the problem does not stem from a lack of laws, but rather from a systematic omission and limited operational coordination between the Ministry of the Environment, Water, and Ecological Transition and the Energy and Non-Renewable Natural Resources Regulation and Control Agency. It is concluded that the neglect of the duty of custody and the absence of a joint strategy with the Armed Forces undermine the country's environmental sovereignty. Finally, the research suggests that ecological justice in Ecuador must move past isolated enforcement operations to focus on structural reforms that ensure comprehensive reparation and distributive justice, guaranteeing the supremacy of the constitutional mandate over illicit economies.