Justice suspends licenses for gas and oil in Amazonas – 05/19/2023 – Environment

The Federal Justice in Amazonas suspended this Friday (19), in a preliminary decision, the licenses granted by the local environmental agency for the exploration of gas and oil in the so-called Campo Azulão, in Silves (AM) and Itapiranga (AM).

This exploration has already been taking place in the region, according to information taken into account in the court decision, despite alleged flaws in the environmental licensing process.

The licenses were granted by Ipaam (Institute for Environmental Protection of Amazonas), of the government of Amazonas. The company that operates in Campo Azulão, in the hydrographic basin of the Amazon River, is Eneva.

The decision by federal judge Maria Elisa Andrade, from the 7th Federal Environmental and Agrarian Court in Manaus, also suspends the public hearing that was scheduled for this Saturday (20) with the purpose of discussing studies of the environmental impact of the undertaking.

The action was filed by Aspac (Silves Association for Environmental and Cultural Preservation) and by an association that represents Mura indigenous people.

According to the lawsuit, the licensing was done without environmental impact studies and without consultation with indigenous and quilombola communities that would suffer impacts from gas and oil exploration in the region.

Licensing is not the responsibility of Ipaam, but of Ibama (Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources), according to the action. Funai (National Foundation of Indigenous Peoples) needs to be consulted, according to the filed petition.

The Justice agreed with the initial arguments and granted the injunction to suspend installation and operation licenses. Permission to operate is from 2021.

In the process, Eneva stated that there are no indigenous lands either in the areas directly affected by the project or in areas of direct influence. According to the company, Ibama does not have competence for licensing, nor is there a need for prior consultation with traditional communities.

Eneva also argued that holding a public hearing would not cause any harm. Both the hearing and the environmental impact report contested in court do not concern the projects that are already in operation, according to the company.

A Sheet sought Eneva to comment on the court decision, but there was no response until publication.

The lawsuit argues that there are direct impacts on the Mura, Munduruku and Hawkeye peoples. There are 190 families in the region, according to the authors of the request sent to Justice.

“The information on the potential environmental impact of crossing the limits of the state of Amazonas is noteworthy, with the risk of contamination by hydrocarbons of important and fundamental water bodies for supplying the communities neighboring the project”, said the judge in the decision.

“In addition to the possible impacts of gas exploration, for indigenous communities, the authors point out that the licensing should be carried out by Ibama”, he added. According to the authors of the action, the region is highly sensitive, and there may be irreversible impacts on the Alter do Chão aquifer, “the main aquifer in the north of the country”.

“Although the suspension of licenses interrupts the gas exploration activity, causing economic damage to the defendant company, the continuation of the activity poses real risks to the life and health of the affected communities, as well as to the environment”, said the magistrate.

The company must submit information and documents to the court related to environmental licenses, which may lead to reconsideration of the decision.

On Wednesday (17), the president of Ibama, Rodrigo Agostinho, accompanied the body’s technical opinion and denied a request made by Petrobras to drill the basin at the mouth of the Amazon River with the aim of exploring oil in the region.

_{The Planeta em Transe project is supported by the Open Society Foundations.}