Charlie Hamilton James: The rainforest and me - in pictures

Charlie Hamilton James on the plot of Amazonian rainforest he bought for £6,000 Photograph: Charlie Hamilton James

Smouldering rainforest Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

Illegal loggers Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

A logger prepares to cut down a mahogany tree Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

The destroyed forest landscape in Acre, Brazil Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

Harvesting coca leaves. Charlie reasoned with the growers using his land rather than face the consequences of destroying their cocaine crop Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

Charlie with Tito and his son Elias who grew up on the land. They were scraping a living through illegal logging, Charlie is paying Elias to help him replant the rainforest Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

Up in flames: clearing the rainforest Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

An abandoned illegal gold mine Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

Charlie working in a gold mine down river from his land Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

Charlie with miner Erasmus in his gold mining camp Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

Gold mine boss Erasmus watches his workers repair a water pipe. With little money and old equipment repairs regularly hinder progress Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

The result of 24 hours work. Gold production is slowing in the Madre de Dios river basin and prices are dropping Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

A gold miner stirring mercury Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

Distressed as he discovers his wife Anna is having a miscarriage, Erasmus weighs the mine's gold. After 24 hours' work the yield is low - just 6.5g. Not enough to break even or pay his workers. Exposure to mercury has been linked to miscarriage. Mercury levels in the population of the lower Madre de Dios river basin are high; especially amongst gold miners and their families Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton

A hardwood tree is illegally felled Photograph: Charlie Hamilton James

A gold miner washing in the mercury mining pool Photograph: Charlie James Hamilton