Emergency declaration extended in Quito and seven provinces; Residents ask court to stop Loma Larga mine; Country risk falls; Cooler weather moves in

President Daniel Noboa has renewed the state of emergency in Quito and seven provinces for 30 days. The extension is necessary, he said, due to “continuing violent activity” by transnational criminal organizations.

“The ultimate objective of this action is to guarantee public order, social peace and the peaceful coexistence of citizens,” Noboa said. The new emergency declaration comes at a time when Guayaquil and Manta are experiencing a surge in gang violence.

Illegal mining in two Amazon provinces is one reason the government cited Monday for extending its emergency declaration.

In addition to Quito, the provinces covered by the new emergency are Guayas, Los Ríos, Manabí, Orellana, Santa Elena, El Oro and Sucumbíos.

The emergency allows police to enter homes without warrants, monitor electronic communication and to conduct personal searches of those suspected of criminal acts.

Residents ask court to stop Loma Larga mine
The residents of Tarqui and Victoria del Portete are asking the court to reject a report by the Mining Ministry giving the go-ahead for the Loma Larga mine. Protesters at the provincial court in Cuenca say the report falsely claims that they support development of the large Canadian gold mine.

“The government report is a lie,” says Rómulo Guzman, president of the Victoria del Portete council. “It claims we agreed to the project and gave our consent in a prior consultation and this did not happen. This mine will poison our water and destroy our livelihoods, as previous studies have shown, and we are asking the court to stop its development.”

Guzman says two popular referendums, one in Girón and another in Cuenca, overwhelming rejected mining in the area. The Girón vote opposed mining by 87%, while Cuenca voters were 80% opposed. “The vote of the people who live in the region has been ignored entirely by the mining ministry and we demand that it be respected,” Guzman said.

The Mining Ministry counters that both public referendums applied only to future mining projects, not to previously granted mining concessions. Canadian mining company Dundee was granted mining rights for Loma Larga in 2021, two years prior to the Girón and Cuenca referendums.

Country risk falls
Ecuador’s economic country risk fell to 898 points on Tuesday, its lowest level in 2025, the Central Bank reported. The index peaked at 1,844 points in April, before the presidential runoff election.

According to bank comments, the dropping risk reflects “growing confidence” in Ecuador’s financial status following the election. “Markets do not like uncertainty and now that the country has completed the electoral process, investors have a clearer idea of the next four years,” the bank said.

Despite the improvement, Ecuador maintains the second highest risk index in South America, only behind Venezuela.

Cooler weather moves in
The National Meteorology Institute says the cooler weather of the last 10 days is the result of dropping Pacific Ocean water temperatures and winter conditions in parts of South America. “What we are experiencing is the seasonal norm for June, July and August, when temperatures average two to three degrees below the yearly average,” the institute reported Wednesday.

The stronger Humboldt (Antarctic) Current in the Pacific Ocean is interacting with the seasonal cyclonic circulation off the coasts of Chile and Peru, meteorologists explain.

On Wednesday, Cuenca recorded a morning low of 6 degrees (43 degrees Fahrenheit).