Lula felt betrayed by Marina in Ibama’s decision – 05/25/2023 – Environment

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva felt betrayed by the publication of Ibama’s decision that denied environmental licensing for Petrobras to drill an oil well at the mouth of the Amazon.

Lula hoped that Minister Marina Silva (Environment) would inform him in advance about the decision, so that he could work out a political solution with the MME (Ministry of Mines and Energy).

The information was confirmed by interlocutors from the Ministry of the Environment, the PT (Workers’ Party) and the presidency of Petrobras.

Marina, however, insisted that Ibama’s decision would be technical and not subject to political interference.

The decision was published on May 17, when Lula was in Japan for the G7 meeting.

Ministers Rui Costa (Casa Civil) and Alexandre Silveira (Mines and Energy) had to wait for the president to return to the country to try to reverse the situation, which increased the political cost of mediation with the Environment, inspiring Marina Silva to fry.

According to government sources, the Minister of the Civil House, Rui Costa, should mediate an agreement between the MME, the MMA (Ministry of the Environment) and Ibama, which should be signed by Lula.

Petrobras intends to present an appeal to Ibama this week, but the company’s president, Jean Paul Prates, should maintain a neutral posture in the political fight.

There is little room for negotiation for the MMA in a possible agreement, which already has the alignment between the MME and the Civil House, in the evaluation of interlocutors from the environmental portfolio.

The three ministers and the president of Ibama already met last Tuesday (23rd), when the MMA reinforced the position that Ibama’s decision was technical and needed to be obeyed —which means, in practice, that the MME must provide the AAAS (Environmental Assessment of Sedimentary Area) as a condition to advance in licensing.

The day after the meeting, the mixed commission of Congress approved MP 1,154, with an emptying of the Ministry of the Environment.

The proposal, which goes to the plenary of the Chamber, transfers to other ministries typical MMA competences, such as the administration of CAR (Rural Environmental Registry), ANA (National Water Agency) and solid waste management systems and basic sanitation. .

The sequence of events was read by interlocutors from the environmental ministry as a game arranged to erode Marina’s name, seen by the president’s political allies as an obstacle to government projects.

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