In 2014, the Honduran government granted a mining concession to Inversiones Los Pinares to mine iron oxide within the Carlos Escaleras National Park, a protected area crucial for the water supply of over 42,000 people. The project, linked to politically connected business figures, led to environmental degradation, including pollution of the Guapinol and San Pedro rivers. Local communities say they were not properly informed or consulted about the concession and the impacts it would have on their lives. According to environmental defender Reynaldo Domínguez, “the company says that there is no contamination in the river but the exams we organised with independent experts show that there is. It’s very concerning. It’s forcing us to displace entire communities who cannot drink from that water.” Local communities, organised under the Municipal Committee for the Defence of Common and Public Assets (CMDBCP), established a peaceful protest camp in 2018. The protest was met with violent eviction, and several activists were criminalised. In 2019, eight were detained for over two years on charges related to their activism, they were later released after international pressure. The conflict escalated with the killings of local activists Aly Domínguez and Jairo Bonilla in January 2023, and Aly's brother, Oquelí Domínguez, in June 2023. In September 2024, Juan López, another prominent activist, was assassinated. Despite international condemnation, including from the UN and Amnesty International, justice remains elusive, and the mining project continues to threaten the region's environmental integrity.